Engineering:R9-Arms submachine gun

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R9-Arms submachine gun
TypeSubmachine gun
Place of originUnknown
Service history
In serviceUnknown-present
Used byVarious Criminal Organizations
Production history
DesignerUnknown
ManufacturerR9-Arms Corp. USA
No. builtUnknown
Specifications
Length9.5 in (24 cm)
Heightroughly 7 in (18 cm)

Cartridge9×19mm Parabellum
ActionBlowback, Hammer-fired
Rate of fireUnknown, possibly 900rpm[1]
Effective firing range10 m
Feed system20, 25, 32, 40, 50 Uzi magazines[2]
SightsSome sort of Partridge style sights, likely 3-dot handgun

The R9-Arms submachine gun is a select fire submachine gun chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum. The R9 is notable because some of them are marked "R9-ARMS CORP. U.S.A.", although no such firm exists. It was made for sale to criminal organizations around the world. Unlike most improvised firearms, the R9 is not a copy of an existing weapon design, nor a low quality insurgency weapon such as the Błyskawica submachine gun.[2][3]

The R9 markings on the gun claim that it is from the United States , but are likely an attempt to gain credibility or baffle local law enforcers.[3]

History

Not much is known about the R9.
A few have been seized in the Netherlands.
An example has allegedly been seized in the United States.[2]

  • 2006: Police and USKOK raided the home of the Vugrek family in Croatia and found an illegal submachine gun and pistol factory and seized an arsenal of weapons. They thought that that would be the end of illegal weapons factories in Hrvatsko Zagorje.[1]
  • April 2010 or earlier: An R9 was seized in Italy;[4] it had fake Intratec TEC-9 markings.
  • 2012: A truck driver smuggling drugs from the Netherlands into the UK was arrested and was found to have an R9-Arms submachine gun fitted with a suppressor.[3]
  • July 2015: Police raided the Vugreks' house again and found and seized many R9-Arms submachine guns there.[2][1]

Speculation as to the gun's origin

There is much speculation as to where the gun is being produced, if it is still being produced. The most plausible theory is that they were produced in Croatia, due to the number of R9-Arms submachine guns confiscated there.[2][3] Furthermore, Croatia is and has been the home of a number of illegal arms manufacturers, such as Mirko Vugrek and his son, Ivan Vugrek.[1]

References