January 17, 2004: Someone is building cell phone guns and distributing them through the criminal underground. These weapons first showed up in Europe in late 2000. The weapon is built around a hollow cell phone case. The mechanism is installed inside the case so that by hitting the correct buttons, the cell phone case comes apart. In the top half you can see four .22 caliber (5.56mm) bullets in short barrels that are concealed by the plastic covering at the top of the cell phone. When you snap the cell phone back together, four of the buttons on the cell phone will release a spring loaded firing pin into the rear of one of the bullets, firing it out the front of the case. It's not very accurate, but from a few feet away, a shot in the head will kill, and a hit anywhere else will be felt. These cell phone guns have not yet been reported in the United States. But the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the U.S. Customs Service have all been briefed on the new weapons, as have all U.S. ports of entry. No one is sure, but it is thought that the cell phone guns were invented, and are being built, somewhere in the Balkans. While they look like cell phones, if you hold one in your hand they are noticeably heavier. For criminals, especially professional killers, such weapons would be useful in situations where people are being frisked for weapons when entering a club, or a meeting with other gangsters. The weapons could also be smuggled into jails to aid in prison escapes. Commandoes and spies might find this device useful as well. The weapons could also be used to hijack aircraft.
