Rare Weapon Turned in at Police Buy-Back

StG 44 in 7.92x33 Kurz.

WWII weapon turned in during gun buy-back program in CT

Police officers in Connecticut received one very unusual weapon during a gun buy-back program last week -- the gun was from World War II and is worth over $30,000.

All sorts of guns were turned in at the gun buy-back event in Hartford last Saturday, but one weapon caught the eyes of officers.

"The chance to see a piece of history -- this … is absolutely unbelievable,” said Officer Lewis Crabtree of the Hartford Police Dept.

That's because the weapon turned in is a World War II-era assault rifle used by the Germans.

"Usually, this rifle would be issued to SS troops,” said Officer John Cavanna of the Hartford Police.

Interestingly, this was probably the only gun turned in for the buy-back that was actually a true assault rifle, in fact, it is considered by many to be the first assault rifle, which set the mold for others to come.

It's sad that the woman who turned it in didn't know anything about it, or how her father acquired it:

But you might be wondering right now, how did a German soldier's weapon wind up in the hands of an American?

“You could kill a solider back then, and if the captain of your fighting unit signed off on it, you could send that gun home to your family or kid brother or cousin,” Cavanna said. “Anything you wanted. Her father, who was a World War II army man, had brought this gun home from the European theater."

But at least the officers had the good sense and discretion to tell the woman what she had and allow her to keep it to sell to collectors.