Manitoba man, 57, given 5-year prison sentence after border officers found ghost-gun-making materials

CBC News

· Posted: Jun 30, 2025 12:28 PM EDT | Last Updated: 8 hours ago

A Manitoba antheral has been sentenced to 5 years successful situation aft borderline services and constabulary officers recovered a fig of prohibited firearms and tools utilized to marque untraceable firearms.

Robert Ripcik, 57, was fixed a five-year situation condemnation connected Friday, arsenic good arsenic a 10-year firearms prohibition and an order to supply a DNA sample, the Canada Border Services Agency said successful a quality release.

Ripcik, who lives successful Beausejour, Man., has been successful custody since helium was arrested successful March 2024.

He pleaded blameworthy to a fig of charges successful Selkirk provincial court, including unauthorized possession of firearms, making mendacious statements, and possessing prohibited devices, illegally imported goods and a prohibited firearm with readily accessible ammunition.

Investigators began to look into Ripcik successful April 2023, aft CBSA officers successful Winnipeg recovered a shipment of items utilized to marque firearms without serial numbers, oregon "ghost guns," which are untraceable.

Officers with the CBSA and RCMP searched a agrarian spot adjacent Chatfield, Man., astir a twelvemonth later.

They seized a fig of prohibited and non-restricted firearms, arsenic good arsenic a 3D printer, aggregate overcapacity magazines, a fully automatic AR-15 signifier rifle, and handgun parts without serial numbers.