When the Department of Justice allowed files for 3D-printed guns on the internet, I commented that it was the end of gun control. Oh, you could pass all the laws you want, as various state legislatures and even Congress has illustrated, but even the little hope of making them work evaporated when people could produce firearms in the comfort of their living room.

Of course, many ignored my pronouncement. Yeah, I know, most never heard or read it, but my point remains. An awful lot of people don’t get it.

An arrest in heavily gun-controlled Spain may help illustrate that point.

Agents of the Spanish National Police found a nearly finished 3D-made AR9 submachine gun. The homemade printed weapon was discovered during an operation in the province of La Coruña. The action was for illegal possession of a weapon. Several raids and searches were made for the illegal production of weapons.

During one of the searches, the 3D printed submachine gun was found. It was almost finished. The main parts of the AP9 were already made using PETG fibers. The frame and slide of the weapon were also made. The 3D printer was prepared to print the remaining parts. In addition to the weapon, the special cops found a large number of rolls of PETG fiber, suggesting that the AR9 found would not be the only printed submachine gun.

Spanish agents found three 3D printing machines, computers, plans, and blueprints of other weapons. “In this way, according to the investigators, the arrested person was finishing the production of an AR9 submachine gun, the purpose of which was terminated due to the rapid police action,” emphasized the National Police.

Now, this is Spain. Their gun control laws make California look like Texas or Missouri.

Yet even they weren’t in a position to prevent this kind of thing from happening. I mean, yes, they got the guy before the weapon was completed, but they only found out about him because they happened to find a way to monitor a social media channel discussing these kinds of things.

Were it not for that, the individual in question would have completed his firearm.

Regardless, gun control is supposed to prevent people from getting guns. Clearly, it didn’t stop him from getting damn close and likely wouldn’t have without the break of finding the social media group.

The law itself didn’t really prevent much of anything.

And how many people have done the same thing only they didn’t talk about it on Facebook? How many used more hidden channels to find out about the files? How many criminal gangs have already built these and are ready to use them whenever they desire while the innocent, law-abiding Spanish people are left defenseless?

Yeah, I know that Europe doesn’t have the same crime we do, but that doesn’t mean there’s no crime, either.

Look, gun control doesn’t work. This should illustrate that perfectly, but it won’t. Not to the people who need the lesson the most.

Instead, they’ll double down and never realize they’re helping the people they claim they want to stop.