zimv20
May 13, 2004, 01:25 AM
link (http://www.canada.com/saskatoon/starphoenix/news/story.html?id=eef309e0-bf08-4f13-b0ba-af8791392e1c)
May 10, 2004
Brandon Buchan ripped open his couriered package expecting to find an MP3 player inside.
Instead, an unloaded .22-calibre Smith and Wesson handgun stared up at him.
"I just stood there for a moment and tried to figure out what to do," said Buchan, 21, a third-year English major at the University of Saskatchewan.
The gun made it across the Canadian border without incident, labelled as an MP3 player. Buchan opened it last week.
Buchan points to the empty box on his kitchen table. Next to it is a handgun licence for Abe's Pawn Shop in Louisiana.
"Before I even saw the gun, that gun licence was (visible) inside," said Buchan, holding the paper up.
"I thought, 'What does that have to do with an MP3 player?' and then I reached in and picked it up. I was really shocked to see it was a gun," Buchan said.
Buchan called Saskatoon Police Service and officers arrived a few hours later to pick up the gun. They said Buchan did the right thing.
"If that gun had gone to the wrong person it could have been a very dangerous situation," said Sgt. Wilf Martin, a member of the national weapons enforcement team. "Thank goodness it was this fellow who received it."
Martin said he has never heard of any other situation like this accidental delivery and called the incident "shocking."
Buchan used the online auction house eBay to successfully bid on an MP3 player from a U.S. pawn shop. He paid more than $300 for the portable audio device. But the pawn shop mixed up two of its orders. Buchan ended up with someone's gun and someone else received his order.
He said he was disappointed and e-mailed the pawn shop immediately about the mistake.
Saskatoon police will hold onto the gun until they contact Canada Customs to determine next steps.
In the meantime, Buchan's real MP3 player should arrive in the next few days -- probably couriered by UPS, which had delivered the first package.
"We do not willingly or knowingly ship handguns in Canada," said Sarah Tattersall, media spokesperson for UPS Canada. "Safety is very important to us."
The shipping receipt for UPS listed the contents of the package as an MP3 player, not a gun.
(more)
May 10, 2004
Brandon Buchan ripped open his couriered package expecting to find an MP3 player inside.
Instead, an unloaded .22-calibre Smith and Wesson handgun stared up at him.
"I just stood there for a moment and tried to figure out what to do," said Buchan, 21, a third-year English major at the University of Saskatchewan.
The gun made it across the Canadian border without incident, labelled as an MP3 player. Buchan opened it last week.
Buchan points to the empty box on his kitchen table. Next to it is a handgun licence for Abe's Pawn Shop in Louisiana.
"Before I even saw the gun, that gun licence was (visible) inside," said Buchan, holding the paper up.
"I thought, 'What does that have to do with an MP3 player?' and then I reached in and picked it up. I was really shocked to see it was a gun," Buchan said.
Buchan called Saskatoon Police Service and officers arrived a few hours later to pick up the gun. They said Buchan did the right thing.
"If that gun had gone to the wrong person it could have been a very dangerous situation," said Sgt. Wilf Martin, a member of the national weapons enforcement team. "Thank goodness it was this fellow who received it."
Martin said he has never heard of any other situation like this accidental delivery and called the incident "shocking."
Buchan used the online auction house eBay to successfully bid on an MP3 player from a U.S. pawn shop. He paid more than $300 for the portable audio device. But the pawn shop mixed up two of its orders. Buchan ended up with someone's gun and someone else received his order.
He said he was disappointed and e-mailed the pawn shop immediately about the mistake.
Saskatoon police will hold onto the gun until they contact Canada Customs to determine next steps.
In the meantime, Buchan's real MP3 player should arrive in the next few days -- probably couriered by UPS, which had delivered the first package.
"We do not willingly or knowingly ship handguns in Canada," said Sarah Tattersall, media spokesperson for UPS Canada. "Safety is very important to us."
The shipping receipt for UPS listed the contents of the package as an MP3 player, not a gun.
(more)
