Mick Ranger
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mick Ranger | |
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| Born | 1947 |
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| Occupation | Arms dealer |
Mick Ranger is an Essex, UK based arms dealer. He previously sold Michael Ryan the Chinese-made Kalashnikov AK47 rifle that he used in 1987 to kill 16 people during the Hungerford massacre.[1]
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[edit] Biography
Born in 1947 (age 60–61), Ranger runs Imperial Defence Services, which is based out of the Essex village of Takeley. His firm has operations in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Nigeria, Australia, South Africa and Vietnam[1]. The company website states:
| “ | Apart from countless transactions involving small arms in general, we have completed transactions for Surface to Air Missiles, Anti-tank weapons and a large quantity of Missile Warhead Fuses, Rifle Grenades and Heavy Machine Guns. | ” |
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— Imperial Defence Services Website[2]
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The website does not quote prices, although it is claimed that it previously stated the company sold grenade-launchers for £450, and a collection of rifles from £195 to a £20,000 General Electric Minigun.[1]
[edit] Disputed dealings
In 2003 The Guardian published a report suggesting that Ranger was willing to sell arms to an undercover reporter posing as an agent wanting arms for a peace-keeping operation near the Iraqi border in Syria. The reporter made it clear that the weapons might be used in Iraq, but Ranger had no qualms with selling the weapons.[1] Ranger made it clear he was aware of UN arms restrictions and told the undercover reporter that, "he would not agree to any deal where Iraq was mentioned in official documents," [1] and that the end user certificate would require, "conclusive wording... that the guns being supplied will stay in Syria and will only be used by people so authorised by the Syrian government."[1][3]
[edit] Hungerford massacre
The Hungerford massacre occurred in Hungerford, Berkshire, England, on Wednesday, August 19, 1987. A 27-year-old unemployed local labourer, Michael Robert Ryan, armed with several fully-licensed weapons including a semi-automatic AK-47, shot and killed 16 people. The Chinese Type 56 AK-47 had been legally sold to Ryan by Ranger, who was the sole UK importer of the weapon, dealing directly with the manufacturer, Norinco. It was reported that sales of the gun increased significantly during the week following the massacre[4].
[edit] Quotes
| “ | I wouldn’t really like to say how many guns I’ve sold over the years, certainly tens of thousands. | ” |
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— Mick Ranger[5]
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[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f Barnett, Antony. "Exposed: Global dealer in death" (HTML), The Guardian, 27 April 2003. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.
- ^ Imperial Defence Services Limited. About Us. Retrieved April 13, 2008.
- ^ International Action Network on Small Arms (2007). Amnesty International Undermining Global Security: the European Union's arms exports (HTML). International Action Network on Small Arms. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.
- ^ Jeremy Josephs. Hungerford - One Man's Massacre. Retrieved July 28, 2007.
- ^ Ranger, Mick (7th December 2003). Correspondent: Gun Traffic (HTML). BBC. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.
