Albany, New York - The New York Attorney General changed the rules of the state's gun buyback program after a participant exploited the system using a 3D printer to mass-produce firearm parts which he then exchanged for $21,000 in gift cards.

The seller, who identified himself with a pseudonym, said he traveled from West Virginia to buy back a gun on August 27 in Utica, New York, to exploit a loophole in the program — and to demonstrate that buybacks are pointless in the era of printable weapons.

At the buyback, he delivered 60 printed automatic devices — small devices that can turn firearms into fully automatic weapons. Under the buyback rules, hosted by Attorney General Letitia James’ office and city police, he was awarded $350 for each printed part, including a $100 premium, as they were considered “ghost guns” lacking serial numbers. The seller, who declined to reveal his real name, said in an email to the Associated Press on Monday that the chance to make money was tempting, but the main reason for his participation in the buyback was to send a message.

He described the idea of the buyback as “ridiculously foolish,” adding that “the people running this event are horribly uninformed about guns, gun crimes, and gun control laws.” James’ office said it responded to the exploited loophole by giving buyback staff more discretion to determine the value of the firearms turned in, setting a standard that all 3D-printed guns accepted by the program must be capable of firing more than once.

The new rules were in effect by September 17, when the Attorney General’s office hosted a gun buyback in the suburb of Camillus in Syracuse. James' office said in a statement, “It is shameful that this person exploited a program that has succeeded in removing thousands of guns from the streets to protect our communities from gun violence.”

Buybacks are a common method for government officials to try to remove guns from the streets, usually with a promise of no questions asked and amnesty for someone turning in an illegal weapon. Some of the firearms turned into those programs are legally owned.

Others are abandoned by people who are not allowed to own guns or who turn in illegally modified rifles. The rule change by James comes as state and federal officials try to deal with the proliferation of ghost guns.

President Joe Biden announced changes in April to the federal law’s definition of firearms to include unfinished parts, which will include those made by 3D printers. The New York Attorney General’s office has been hosting buybacks since 2013. James recently warned that ghost guns fuel “a gun violence epidemic” and sees buybacks as part of the solution, as do police forces in Syracuse and elsewhere.

Her office said, “We have partnered with local police across the state to recover more than 3,500 firearms, and the greedy behavior of one individual will not stop us from fighting for the public safety of all New Yorkers.”

Edited by: Yusra Bamtarf