Guns smuggled from U.S. blamed for surge in killings on more Caribbean islands: report

NEW YORK, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- No Caribbean nation manufactures firearms or ammunition or imports them on a large scale, but they account for half of the world's top 10 highest national murder rates, The Associated Press reported Wednesday.

In a letter sent to U.S. legislators in late September, New York's attorney general and 13 other colleagues across the country demanded new measures to stop the flow of guns, noting that 90 percent of weapons used in the Caribbean were bought in from the United States and smuggled into the region, said the report, citing a statement from U.S. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut.

"American-made guns are flowing into Caribbean nations and communities and fueling violence, chaos, and senseless tragedies throughout the region," wrote New York Attorney General Letitia James.

In mid-2023, the U.S. government appointed its first coordinator for Caribbean firearms prosecutions to help curb weapon smuggling from the United States to the region, with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) already tracing firearms seized in the Caribbean.

Last year, 266 firearms seized in the Bahamas were submitted to ATF, along with 234 firearms from Jamaica, 162 from the Dominican Republic and 143 from Trinidad and Tobago, according to the agency's most recent data.