Police have discovered guns disguised as cell phones.
The above-quoted 'cell phone gun' warning dates from 2001 and came accompanied by a video clip whichpurportedly showed one such gun in action. However, the video clip (of unknown provenance) doesn't seem to match the one described in the text of the message, nor does it provide visual proof that the object shown is actually firing bullets.The text of the warning was an excerpt from a longer article (also of unknown provenance) which was posted on the South African Cellular Online web site. Other news outlets (such as The Register and the New York Daily News) have also run stories about guns disguised as cell phones that echo the details given in the message above.Do 'cell phone guns' represent an alarming turn in concealed weaponry technology? Probably not, as a customs spokesman maintained that'there's no indication that these are being mass-produced,' and a spokesman for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms noted:Though the novelty of cell-phone guns is interesting, ATF spokesman John D'Angelo says the idea of concealing firearms in common devices is not new. 'Disguised weapons have been around forever. We've seen guns in the form of canes, pens, beepers. As technology progresses and becomes more prevalent, disguised weapons will change to mirror that.'
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