The Scope and Implications of a Tracing Mechanism for Small Arms ...

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3.1.2 Sanitization
Removal or obliteration of identifying marks is commonly referred to
as “sanitization”. Across the illicit small arms market, sanitization is still not
generally widespread. Diversion from legal to illicit market is often a
deliberately lengthy and contrived process, sometimes involving “front
companies” set up for a one-off transaction, which means that, even though
it is still possible to trace and attribute weapons back to the actual point of
diversion or source, by the time investigators have traced the weapons
back, the individuals concerned have closed their business and moved on.
Therefore, sanitization may not always be necessary. In conflict zones
worldwide, it is commonplace for weapons to be recycled and to circulate
between rival factions criss-crossing borders, which further negates the
need to sanitize marks. There are other factors, which can impact on the
need to sanitize, and these include, the quantity of weapons involved;
whether the weapons are second-hand, and the level of political or
commercial damage tracing would have. The latter is a major consideration
for State-controlled arms industries (including those in which local
politicians have a vested interest) supplying new or surplus ex-military
weapons from official government stocks.
However, in the criminal handgun market, for example, sanitization
occurs more frequently; approximately 20% of illegal handguns recovered
in the UK have been sanitized. The diversion process from legal to criminal
market is much shorter, often sourced direct from a limited number of
dishonest registered firearms dealer. A comparison can be made, though,
to small arms where a “rogue State” may sponsor an illicit supply of arms,
in which case sanitization will be an important consideration.
Intelligence sources suggest that there has been an increase in
sanitization commensurate with tracing activities of UN and NATO Forces.
It has become a feature of the long-term peacekeeping role of KFOR in
Kosovo, for example, to identify the sources of illicit weapons and thus
disrupt supplies to disarmed combatants.
Illicit traffickers are alive to the threat tracing poses to their activities.
Hence, while sanitization is currently not widespread it is likely to grow as
traffickers try to counter the increasing emphasis amongst UN, NATO and
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) countries,
spurred on by the NGO community, to identify sources of illicit weapons.