Full-auto find is too hot to handle !!!!

tigerbeetle

Full Member
Jan 2, 2009
166
275
Jersey Shore
Detector(s) used
Many -- Fisher, White's, Minelab, Cobra, others
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
If my TH’ing luck hadn’t been so skunked out lately, I would never have dug the large deep reading I got today while hunting in South Jersey. The sound was one of those typical trash readings that aren’t worth the time it takes to ferret out the fact it’s a flattened soda can or a piece of galvanized roofing. But I was taking on any and all readings.

Using my trusty potato rake tool with a shortened handle (to allow one-hand swings), I ripped up the ground with recklessness. A half foot of ground gave up its resting place. The item was still deeper down. What a waste of time, I thought as I swung again. On that swing, I hit the target -- and was a bit confused by the muffled sound as the rake’s teeth met their mark. It was actually something kinda soft, not metallic. It was also kinda big; larger than a soda can and smaller than a breadbox.

I swung a few times to feel out the shape and finally got past the edge of the item. I swung the potato rake and got the teeth beneath one of the edges. I did one of those heave-ho moves common to power lifting a larger piece of something. What came up was the first red flag of what would be quite a few over the next couple minutes – ending with sirens of utter alarm going off.

I had unearthed a rectangular package wrapped in a garbage bag material, tightly bound with loads of duct tape. Truth be told, it truly looked like the prototypical block of drugs. That stuff spooks me. I had an urge to just rebury the damn thing. But we of a TH’ing ilk are not known to have much power over our incessant curiosity. I had to know what I’d found. .

I unsheathed my Japanese digging-rooting tool and used the fiercely sharp serrated edge to cut through the five separate wraps of tape. It took some serious cutting. Once past the tape, there was the equivalent of two garbage bags worth of wrapping to rip off.. This thing was surely well-bound. Once past the garbage bags, a smaller equally well-wrapped rectangular package was reveled. The size was down to, say, a power drill case. I specifically use that comparison for reason’s you’ll see in a second.

Though the fear of drugs still hung heavy, I also began to entertain the legitimate possibility that this was a beloved pet that had been placed into something rectangular and buried in the forest. I even sniffed the package. Smelled like earth.

I then cut through the latest tape and garbage bag. I was finally getting to the object within. Then, after a final cut or two, I resorted to ripping off the remaining material, a bit like tearing open a present. I soon unwrapped what seemed like nothing more than the above-mentioned power drill case. What a frickin’ relief. All that worry for nothing. Oh, yeah???

I fingered open the two clasps and opened the box, expecting to see the drill – and, if I was lucky, the charger. I flipped it open, all cheery, and my heart sank. What greeted me was easily as bad as any drug. Before me was a deadly Tech 9 full-auto gun with two clips and a flash suppression attachment – and what looked like a frickin’ silencer!!!!! Are you kidding me!?

You don’t have to be weapons expert to know these weapons are death on wheels, the lethal choice of urban gangstas. The weapon had some rusting but was surely still functional.

I quietly freaked. What now? Bury it -- and hope for the best? And have the burier comes back and retrieve it? That would be absurd. I would be part and parcel to anything that gun did in the future. How about burying it elsewhere? And have someone like me find it? I couldn’t risk it. I then opted to do what I hope any sensible soul would do: I got it to the cops, ASAP.

If you think I was shocked by the find, you shoulda seen the reaction of this rural police force. Hell, the small office I was in had a steady flow of law enforcement officials all wanting to get what, for many, was their first look at a Tech-9. Off-duty cops were coming in to see it. I sat in the PD as an initial check of the gun’s serial number was run. No surprise: stolen. I hadn’t touched anything – much. Everyone was using gloves. One officer cocked it and dry fired. It clicked perfectly.

Long and short of it, the weapon was taken into evidence. I’m not sure what happens next. I’m not sure I want to know.

Aftermath: That dig really shook me for some reason. It’s not like I haven’t handled M16s and the likes but there was something so sinister, so evil, about this weapon that it literally left me sick, almost like a negative aura overwhelmed me. I know that sounds a tad cosmic but I can assure all fellow TH’ers, had they dug it that same spooked out sense would follow the find. For now, I actually don’t feel like detecting again for awhile. In fact, being able to share this with fellow Th’ers in here has helped a bit.
 

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the best part of detecting is reading storys like yours it was great i was hooked reading it ..i would not worry about any negative aura what you did you should feel good about
maybe it was used on someone or in something that you helped solved man great job on the finds if you find jimmy hoffa let me know tigerbeetle i like to read the story.. :notworthy:
 

Tech nine, the drug dealers cheap subgun of choice.It would probaly jam if you fired more than a couple of rounds through it. From expierience I can tell what will happen. They'll hold it in evidence and run an ATF trace on the gun to find the original purchaser and try to backtrace to the original incident report showing it was stolen. Possibly do ballistic testing to see if the bullets fired from it match any unsolved cases and if the bullets in the magazines match any casings left at crime scenes. And of course dust the case and gun and magazines for prints.
 

Good descriptive story. And the only thing you COULD do was turn it in. Somebody (ies) buried it for a reason other than just to get it out of their closet! Probably bring large bucks on the street. I don't typically advocate gettin' cops involved, but...

Coulda been some kids that found it...And maybe there's a reward! Think positive.
 

Very interesting find, I do appreciate that this is possibly a weapon used in a crime but I have to say that i think this is a Banner find, Its not everyday you pull up a fully automatic pistol out of the ground, Infact i am confident to say that it is the first on TNET. Thanks for sharing and doing the right thing. :icon_thumright:
 

The Tec 9 as originally manufactured was a SEMI automatic firearm, not a full auto firearm.

Unless you fired it or disassembled it there is no way to know if it is full auto.

As to the "silencer" it appears to be a standard barrel shroud. See http://world.guns.ru/handguns/hg136-e.htm and the DC-9 for an example.

My wife shot a friend's Tec 9 a few years back. Her comment is it's more deadly if you throw it at someone than shoot at them, the accuracy of it was less than stellar.

Given that you found it in Jersey, my guess is you found some gang bangers secret cache, or worse yet, something the Mafia wanted hidden. Now that you've outed it all over the net you may want to keep an eye over your shoulder.

Interesting find however.

Semper Fi
 

What Dave said.
Mine always went bang and was a fun pistol. If you cock it and the bolt stays back...
thats a barrel shroud not a silencer. They are neato but I'd rather have something higher quality nowadays.
Turning it in was the right choice.
 

I'm only passing on info police offered. I even offered a suggestion that it might have been buried when NJ banned semis about 20 years back. However, this one was modified, per the department's expert.
 

Thank You for a very interesting post. I'm sure with time, you will be back hitting the soil again. Just remember this, the
gun you found will hurt no others. Also Thanks for being one of the good guys, by doing the right thing, by turning in the gun.

Hope it won't be long till you are again enjoying the great outdoors and metal detecting. What better therapy than being outside
metal detecting.

Ringfinder
 

wow um I'm not a urban gangsta ,nor have I ever went cop killin tho I do own a Tec 9, it is as stated a SEMI auto firearm not a fully Auto , the one pictured does NOT have a silencer it has a flash suppresor barrel extention . And unless you loaded it an pulled the trigger there is no way of knowing if it has been altered to fire fully Auto .Well unless you know what your looking for an take it apart .

Glad you did the right thing by turning it over to the police :icon_thumleft: you just never know what gonna be in the bottom of the next hole .

Just remember folks guns dont kill people , people kill people .


HH Tank
 

was it used to off hoffa sorry just a thought thats a scary find for shure but to me its a wierd banner find :notworthy:
 

Nice find! I vote Banner! You did the right thing by turning it into the police. :icon_thumright: :icon_thumleft:
 

Those things make better door stops than guns. Thats a barrel shroud, as someone mentioned. A real silencer would run $400-$600 for that gun, plus a $200 BATF stamp. I'm sure it was burried for a reason.....crime, domestic violence....who knows? Good that it's now gone for good. I'm pro gun, but those are useless.
 

a buried gun --of a type well know to be a gang bangers tool of choice * yep nothing to do but turn that puppy in. -- no good could come from doing otherwize. ) as you found out --it was "hot" surprize , surprize -- who knows might even have a "body or two on it" :o as well.
 

First I want to say WOW, but you know and I know that that gun was hidden because it was used on someone. Now you did the right thing by handing this gun over to the police, but the bad thing was that you posted this on the internet. I did see one post stating to keep an eye out over your shoulder. I wouldn't take that lightly. There is a lot of things we love to post out here, but there comes a time, like this, when posting is not a good idea. This is just my opinion, but word gets around, even in the police department, that this gun was found. Be careful.

Your Friend,

Steve in Michigan
 

sasnz said:
Very interesting find, I do appreciate that this is possibly a weapon used in a crime but I have to say that i think this is a Banner find, Its not everyday you pull up a fully automatic pistol out of the ground, Infact i am confident to say that it is the first on TNET. Thanks for sharing and doing the right thing. :icon_thumright:
I agree 100% with everything you said here.
Banner!
 

I have an AR-15 and enjoy shooting and belong to the NRA, but that's made for spaying large amounts of ammo fast, Gives shooting fans a bad name! Not the kind of weapon I want around my house.
Your integrity and forth with is to be praised. Thank you citizen!! BANNER :headbang:
 

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