A growing number of far-right extremists are turning to 3D printers to build untraceable firearms, posing a new challenge for governments struggling to keep pace with digital-age weaponry. These advancements are reshaping the development of weapons and altering the nature of conflict and terrorism.
Since 2020, there has been a surge in the use of 3D printing to manufacture firearms and weapons components. Though primarily a criminal enterprise, extremist networks, particularly far-right ones, have attempted to manufacture 3D-printed firearms (3DPFs) and utilize them in attacks. Several terrorist plots, some in advanced stages, have been uncovered in the United Kingdom, United States, Finland, Spain, Germany, and Canada, causing grave concern for governments in Europe and North America. What emerges is a nexus between the far-right and these 3D-printed weapons, rooted in the ideological underpinnings that define this relationship.
Ideological Strains
The 3DPF community is primarily composed of enthusiasts who are “united by their shared hobby of designing and building firearms.” Extremist or radical ideology is discouraged and regularly banned from these online 3DPF communities. However, some members have been found to espouse extremist ideas.
A common ideological driver of this movement is the libertarian, pro-Second Amendment interpretation of the US Constitution, which promotes unrestricted gun ownership and frames it as a fundamental human right to resist oppressive or tyrannical governments. Many members of the movement share anti-establishment views and believe that they are under threat from their governments. Researchers argue that this worldview combined with an irreverent internet culture results in a movement that is “inherently adversarial towards advocates of gun control.”
The 3DPF movement has been driven by a handful of individuals whose designs and manifestos blatantly fuse technology with ideology. Cody Wilson, an American and one of the pioneers of the 3DPF movement, sought to globalize his Second Amendment rights and circumvent existing firearms regulations by democratizing and making this technology available to everyone. He created the first fully 3D-printed pistol, the Liberator, arguing that freedom and equality demanded that everyone possess the capacity to build and own a firearm.
Jacob Duygu, a German national who was believed to have been based in Völklingen and another key figure within the 3DPF movement, is popularly known by his online moniker ‘JStark 1809.’ The name ‘JStark’ was taken after John Stark, an American military officer who fought during the American Revolutionary War and was famous for the quote “Live free or die.”
Duygu created the FGC-9, a hybrid semi-automatic firearm that does not rely on firearm components and can be manufactured by 3D-printing and commercially available hardware store materials like steel tubes. It is currently the most widely used 3DPF. Duygu strongly believed that owning firearms was a fundamental human right that was key to resisting tyranny and defending against authoritarianism. In a 110-page building manual of the FGC-9, Duygu notes the following:
“We together can defeat for good the infringement that is taking place on our natural born right to bear arms, defend ourselves and rise up against tyranny at any time.”
The name “FGC-9” stands for “F*ck Gun Control-9mm,” bearing the attestation of his ideological leanings. The creation of the FGC-9 stemmed from Duygu’s frustration with strict firearms legislation in Europe.
3DPF expert Rajan Basra conducted a comprehensive study on Duygu’s profile. Basra noted that Duygu also held onto xenophobic, racist and antisemitic beliefs, making threats of violence and endorsing right-wing terrorism on several occasions. Duygu continues to hold ideological significance within the 3DPF community despite his death in 2021, and is widely regarded as a martyr to the cause.
The designers of the Urutau, a cousin of the FGC-9 that is allegedly easier to manufacture, highlight several key issues in their build manual. In a document titled ‘The New Second Amendment,’ the designers explain the objectives of the Urutau: practicality, invulnerability to state intervention, and competitiveness with modern standards. The right to bear arms is mentioned as follows:
“If you live in a location where your government limits or strips you of your right to keep and bear arms, we sympathize, and it is our intention to return your right to you.”
The decentralization and democratization of 3D-printing technology is seen as a back channel to firearms access in an environment that is perceived to be more stringent legally.
Experts Yannick Veilleux-Lepage and Zoltán Füredi note that the 3DPF community has also been influenced by digital subcultures, including gaming. The video game ‘Cyberpunk 2077’ has influenced several community members directly, including Jacob Duygu himself. The game is known for exhibiting the use of technology and themes of resistance against oppression.
Adoption by Far-Right Extremists
3DPFs have found particular resonance among far-right extremists. To date, at least 36 cases have linked 3DPFs to this movement, with 24 involving lone actors. Notably, 41% of these cases concerned the manufacturing or attempted manufacturing of firearms, most often the FGC-9, which has emerged as the weapon of choice within far-right circles.
The most significant far-right extremist case involving a 3DPF was the 2019 Halle attack. The attacker, Stephan Balliet, had targeted members of the Jewish community in the eastern German town of Halle (Saale) with a firearm that had 3D-printed components. The attack has set a precedent for future terrorism attempts.
The reasons for which 3DPFs have been most prevalent with the far-right are primarily ideological and geographical in nature. Far-right extremist ideology has widely advocated for the accumulation of weapons in preparation for a takeover of government and a hypothetical ‘race war.’ The White Resistance Manual, a notable white supremacist handbook published in the late 90’s, notes the following:
“To be armed is your duty as a member of the White race and as a White activist. You should make every effort to obtain weapons, for your own defense, by legal means… We must be armed and remain armed even if laws are passed to outlaw civilian ownership of firearms. Even if you have no intention of taking up armed struggle during these early days of resistance it is absolutely imperative that you be equipped to fight when the time comes. Weapons to be used in our struggle may have to be stolen, purchased from black market sources or improvised.”
The same manual goes to great lengths to spell out the processes of manufacturing various weapons. Far-right forums regularly share a substantial amount of material pertaining to firearms and weapons, further increasing the chances of users coming across 3D-printed gun designs. Alleged neo-Nazi Jim Holmgren was motivated by far-right extremist ideology and was believed to have been plotting an attack in Sweden in 2021. He had attempted to 3D-print and manufacture several firearms, including the FGC-9. Holmgren had sourced information from 3DPF forums while masking his ideological inclinations, thus avoiding removal by the administrators of these forums.
A 2021 study noted that the far-right in the US has become increasingly interested in firearms, particularly 3DPFs, as a result of gun control measures implemented by the Biden administration. The study further notes numerous examples of far-right actors advocating for the use of 3D-printed weapons in attacks and assassinations, and sharing instructional materials and weapons manuals on closed platforms such as Telegram, 4Chan, 8Kun and the Darknet. The files and weapons manuals were found to have originated from European far-right designers.
3DPFs offer far-right extremists a viable and accessible alternative avenue to obtaining weapons without the need to rely on external criminal networks, particularly in areas where firearms are strictly regulated, such as Europe. Hybrid 3DPF models like the FGC-9 are prevalent in European countries for that reason. The models can be manufactured using a mix of printed components and hardware store materials like steel tubes without the need to depend on commercial firearm parts. The main aim of FGC-9 design was to enable gun possession in any part of the world and circumvent firearm regulations. While the FGC-9 is challenging to manufacture, particularly for someone with minimal experience, simpler hybrid designs such as the Urutau, Not-A-Glock, Harlot and Ryno are lowering the barrier to entry.
Notable Case Studies and Addressing the Threat
In June, a far-right extremist cell in Portugal called the Movimento Armilar Lusitano (MAL) was found to have manufactured several 3DPFs. An FGC-9 rifle and a Harlot pistol were found in the raid. This was the first case in Portugal, a country with a relatively low gun crime rate, that involved 3DPFs. The cell included members of the security services and was believed to have been targeting several political institutions and politicians.
The growing involvement of young people with these weapons is alarming. Independent data indicates at least 80 cases globally where youths have attempted to manufacture or use 3DPFs, 17 of which were linked to far-right extremism. In August 2025 in the UK, 21-year-old Ondrej Sidelka was sentenced to prison for possession of a large quantity of far-right extremist material. He was also found to be in possession of 3DPF manuals on his digital device and a 3D printer at his home.
In the U.S., 24-year-old Hayden Espinosa was indicted for selling illegal firearm components, some of which were 3D-printed. He was also found to have been posting white supremacist, neo-Nazi and anti-government content on a Telegram channel and on YouTube. The authorities found that Payton Gendron, the perpetrator of a far-right motivated mass shooting targeting the African American community in Buffalo in May 2022, was a member of the very same Telegram channel that Espinosa was managing.
The intersection of 3DPFs and other emerging technologies with crime and terrorism will continue to get more challenging, owing to the democratisation and decentralisation of technologies, particularly multi-use ones which have legitimate and commercial uses.
Addressing this challenge will require a holistic mix of responses. Hard security measures should include intelligence gathering, prosecution, strong legislation, and arrests. Soft, long-term approaches must focus on raising awareness, expanding education, and training both law enforcement and the public. Technological safeguards will be vital, such as developing digital defence systems that block printers from producing firearm blueprints and building online hash databases to detect and remove these files from online platforms.
(Rueben Dass is an Associate Research Fellow with the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS). His current research interests include terrorist use of technologies; 3D-printed firearms; Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) terrorism and terrorism and counterterrorism in Southeast Asia.)