In July earlier this year, the debate regarding 3D-printed guns hit the forefront of public attention. The product, which was coined by Cody Wilson and his company Defense Distributed, allows American’s to purchase the blueprint for a number of different guns and then utilize a local 3D printer to create the gun. From there, the printed gun is fully functionally. Thus, those printed these guns would not technically have to get a license to carry their gun and guns could be created with much less enforcement and regulation.
In response to the printable guns, 19 states filed a lawsuit to block the distribution of those files in their state, citing public safety concerns. The states scored an early victory on the issue when a Seattle judge placed a temporary restraining order on the distribution of the gun blueprints. Eventually, the won a full victory as the blueprints were made illegal to sell.
Fast forward to today and Cody Wilson is making the headline again. In the past, his name was synonymous with the gun blueprints, but now he is accused of sexually assaulting a child. Texas police say that they received a call August 22 from a counselor who claimed that her client, who was a juvenile, had been assaulted by a 30-year-old man. The girl, who was 16 at the time, said that Wilson paid her $500 to have sex with her through sugardaddymeet.com.
On Wednesday of this week, police said they still have not been able to track down Wilson. His last known location is Taipei, Taiwan, which he frequently travels to for business. However, police also say that he missed a flight which was scheduled to bring him back to the US earlier this month. In an official statement, an officer from the Austin Police Department said, “We don’t know why he went to Taiwan, but we do know before he left he was informed by a friend of the victim that she had spoken to police and police were investigating him for sex with a minor.”
On the night of the crime, the girl and Wilson met in a café parking lot. They two drove to a nearby hotel in Austin in a black Ford Edge, which police later identified as a vehicle which belonged to Defense Distributed. Hotel surveillance video showed the girl and Wilson exiting a hotel elevator and entering a room on the seventh floor of the hotel. Approximately 45 minutes later, the two emerged from the room and proceeded back to the elevator. Eventually, Wilson dropped the girl off at a nearby local restaurant. Video surveillance from the establishment shows the black Ford Edge pulling up nearly two hours after she was picked up from the café.
The Austin Police Department is working with national and international law enforcement to try and track down Wilson. A warrant is still standing for Wilson’s arrest. When brought in, he will be held on $150,000 and will have to surrender his password. If convicted, Wilson could face up to 20 years in prison.
