CRIMINAL charges have now been laid against Justin Michael Bos, 38, of Langley and Matthew McKenzie Whitty, 36, of Delta after investigators from the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit – British Columbia (CFSEU-BC) investigated alleged firearms manufacturing and possession.
In December 2021, information was received that led the CFSEU-BC’s Illegal Firearms Enforcement Team (IFET) to begin an investigation into the alleged manufacturing and trafficking of privately made firearms.
Search warrants were conducted on February 18 and April 2, 2022, on residences in Langley and Surrey. CFSEU-BC IFET investigators seized the following items:
* 3 airsoft pistols converted to .22 calibre firearms; two had silencers attached
* Multiple magazines
* Multiple GSG 1911 slides (used to convert airsofts into functioning firearms)
* Ammunition;
* 15 suppressors;
* Other items consistent with a firearms manufacturing lab
On December 8, the BC Prosecution Service charged the following individuals with firearms related offences;
Bos has been charged with one count of firearms manufacturing, one count of possession of a prohibited device, one count of importation of a prohibited device, two counts of possession of a restricted firearm (an improvised semi-automatic pistol), one count of possession of a prohibited device (a device designed to muffle sound), and one count of possession of a loaded firearm.
Whitty has been charged with two counts of possession of a restricted firearm (an improvised semi-automatic pistol), one count of possession of a prohibited device (a device designed to muffle sound), two counts of possession of a restricted firearm, and one count of possession of a loaded firearm.
Whitty has been released, while Bos remains in custody awaiting the judicial process.
“The Crime Gun Intelligence and Investigations Group (CGIIG) of CFSEU-BC links firearm intelligence, analysis and enforcement efforts towards results like this,” says Inspector Joel Hussey, Operations Officer for CFSEU-BC. “Privately made firearms represent a growing trend in British Columbia and internationally by which criminals attempt to obtain firearms and to profit from firearms sales. CFSEU-BC is working closely with its partners across the province to investigate and disrupt the people and groups who may seek to illegally make and sell firearms.”
