Politics

Authorities Find .50 Cal At El Chapo’s Lair Tied To Fast And Furious

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Mexican officials raided Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s secret hideout and found a gun tied to Fast and Furious, the Obama administration’s failed gun trafficking operation, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

The DOJ said in a letter to Congress Tuesday Mexican officials discovered a .50-caliber rifle after busting El Chapo’s hideout, CBS News reports. The gun came from the DOJ as part of the “gun-walking” operation in which the DOJ sold weapons to criminals from 2009 to 2011 hoping to track them as part of a sting to catch gun smugglers. The sting later blew up into a scandal when it became public, largely because the DOJ lost track of about 1,700 of the guns. Many have been involved in violent crimes.

Now, it turns out one of those guns was found at the lair of the notorious Mexican criminal. The gun was bought in July, 2010. El Chapo escaped from prison in 2015 but was recaptured in January. The letter also explained four other guns had been used in violent crimes.

“ATF and the (Justice) Department deeply regret that firearms associated with Operation Fast and Furious have been used by criminals in the commission of violent crimes, particularly crimes resulting the death of civilians and law enforcement officers,’’ Assistant Attorney General Peter Kadzik said in a letter Tuesday to Senate Committee on the Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley and House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Jason Chaffetz. “ATF accepts full responsibility for the flawed execution of Fast and Furious, and will continue to support Mexican law enforcement in efforts to recover and identify associated firearms.”

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