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Cody Wilson, 3D-Printed Gun Pioneer, Arrested In Taiwan (reason.com)

Cody Wilson, maker of the first 3D-printed plastic gun, has been arrested in Taiwan. Long-time Slashdot reader SonicSpike quotes Reason: Earlier this week, Texas police issued a warrant for his arrest. Wilson, they claimed, found a woman on sugardaddymeet.com, a website that requires all users to assert they are 18 or over, then met her and paid for sex with her. Police say the woman was actually 16, which made that act a violation of Texas penal code 22.011 (A)(2)(a), regarding sex with a minor, which is legally considered sexual assault regardless of consent or payment.

While Taiwan has no formal extradition treaty with the U.S., and Wilson was not said to have been doing anything directly criminal in Taiwan, the press there reports that he was arrested without incident because the U.S. had revoked his passport, making his mere presence in Taiwan illegal. (The U.S. government has the power to revoke the passports of people facing felony arrest warrants.) Wilson was then, according to The New York Times, "delivered...to the National Immigration Agency" in Taiwan. It is expected to deport him to the U.S. to face those charges, which carry a potential 2 to 20 years in prison and $10,000 fine.

A reporter for Ars Technica visited Wilson's home weapons printing company, and was told that "A management restructuring is coming." But they also contacted Adam Bhala Lough, who directed and wrote a documentary film about Wilson. Prior to Wilson's arrest, Lough argued that "Without Cody, it can't last. It's like Tesla and Elon Musk, you can't separate the two.

"If he comes home and faces the music, there is a chance Defense Distributed will survive because it is a totally independent company without a board or any regulatory body. And the buyers of these products -- not to generalize, but at least the ones I met while doing the documentary -- they won't care about buying a product from an [accused] pedophile. In fact they may be even more emboldened by the idea that Cody was 'set-up' or that it is a 'deep-state conspiracy' against him, even if (or when) he admits to it."

20 of 476 comments (clear)

  1. Beware character assasinations by elrous0 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Any time a person in the government's crosshairs gets arrested on a sex crime or pedophilia charge, be VERY wary of believing it.

    Anyone remember what happened to the IMF Director who was stupid enough to challenge the supremacy of the U.S. dollar?

    --
    SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    1. Re:Beware character assasinations by DogDude · · Score: 4, Informative

      Any time a person in the government's crosshairs gets arrested on a sex crime or pedophilia charge, be VERY wary of believing it.

      Why? What evidence do you have?

      " In a TV interview in September, Strauss-Kahn admitted that his liaison with Diallo was a moral fault and described it as "inappropriate""

      "According to a report in L'Express Strauss-Kahn admitted to attempting to kiss Banon."

      Your example is a guy who admits that he cheats on his wife and admits that he at least tries to sexually assault women. I don't think you know how this whole "argument" thing is supposed to work.

      --
      I don't respond to AC's.
  2. Re: Does anyone really believe the government here by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    First off as a veteran of the Vietnam conflict I do not believe you understand what communism is.

    Second, Cody Wilson is not the father of 3D do it yourself gun projects.

    Third what the hell is with you crazy people blaming a child???? I am now 74. Someone of the age of 16 is not fully developed.

    it is absolutely disgusting that anyone who considers them self a conservative nor libertarian would result into such hideous victim-blaming of a child.

  3. Re:Does anyone really believe the government here? by Noishkel · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Well I don't disagree with what you're saying, but ultimately Cody did do something really stupid and put himself out there.

    I'm a pretty solid constitutional, so I do support his case. But Wilson's always had a somewhat well deserved reputation for having a real big ego. And in doing so he left himself open for this kind of attack, not to mention that he was on a rather scuzzy looking website to begin with. That was just flat out a damn stupid thing that he did.

  4. Re:Does anyone really believe the government here? by mi · · Score: 4, Insightful

    This absolutely doesn't smell right.

    Yep, it smells like the "rape" accusations against Julian Assange... Neither Wilson's "assault", which allegedly consisted of a consensual sex with a 16 y/o prostitute, nor Assange's "rape", which was alleged to have consisted of not using protection in an otherwise consensual encounter — were anything close to what's normally associated with the highly loaded terms used to describe the actions ("sexual assault", "rape").

    Both men have greatly inconvenienced the US government shortly before these allegations came to light, however...

    --
    In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
  5. Re:"Without Cody, it can't last." I highly doubt t by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 4, Insightful
    The arrest warrant was issued by Texas.

    Not really known to be totalitarian anti gun anti second amendment state.

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  6. Re:Yes by Baloroth · · Score: 4, Insightful

    A 16 year old isn't a child? What the heck are you talking about? Literally and legally, a 16 year old is a child. That's why we imprison people who fuck 16 year olds.

    No, biologically and by the standards of the past few thousand or so years of human society, a 16 year old is an adult. Treating them like a child is an extremely recent cultural development due to the increased length of education typically required to get a job rather than any actual biological or physiological reason. In fact, many/most places in the US (and across the world, for that matter, including most of Europe) actually have the age of consent at 16, not 18. It's also certainly not pedophilia: by definition, pedophilia is attraction to pre-pubescent individuals. Any 16 year old who is still pre-pubescent has a rather extreme developmental disorder, which I suspect is not the case here.

    --
    "None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license." --John Milton
  7. Re: Does anyone really believe the government here by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    No, someone IN THE STATE OF TEXAS of the age of 16 is not fully developed. FIFY.

    In the United States, every state has it's own age of consent, with the most common being age 16. Yes, that's right, 16. Unfortunately for Cody, his love making was done in the state of Texas, where the legal age of consent is 18. If he had simply been living up north by one state, he might not be in such hot water.

  8. Re:Yes by iggymanz · · Score: 4, Informative

    Wrong, in plenty of states in the USA young women can get married at 16. As is true in many countries.

    16 is not a child, female would be sexually mature then.

    Pedophile means attraction to child that is not sexually mature.

    Ephebophilia is sexual attraction to adolescents, could say in many places this would be the crime he is guilty of... but depends on region.

    You're confused.

    Sure, 16 is too young I think, but the law says otherwise in half the earth including your country.

  9. Not a pedophile by shaksys · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Paying for sex with a woman who convincingly passes as an adult does not make a person a pedophile. A criminal, yes, but saying he is into prepubescent children because he bought sex from a person who could easily pass as a fully grown adult is just fraudulently incorrect.

  10. Who made those accusations? by guruevi · · Score: 4, Insightful

    a) How did Texas police KNOW that he went on any specific website (spying on his Internet traffic?)
    b) How did Texas police KNOW that he asked for a 16yo girl (spying on his computer?)
    c) How did Texas police KNOW that he visited anyone in Taiwan AND performed a potentially illegal act (spying on his person)
    d) How did Texas police revoke a FEDERAL passport
    e) How does Taiwan get to extradite him to the US if he currently has no formal documents that support his nationality

    This smells on all sides. If I were Taiwan/China I'd ask some serious questions: why is US local and/or federal law enforcement conducting surveillance against anyone in our country?

    --
    Custom electronics and digital signage for your business: www.evcircuits.com
    1. Re:Who made those accusations? by WindBourne · · Score: 4, Informative

      No. Nothing smells on ANY side of this, except maybe Wilson's.
      Wilson was on SugarDaddyMeet, which is a male version of Cougars. The girl told her counselor who then told police.
      By the time that police found out, he was in Taiwan, so, they were waiting for him to come back. However, he was told by somebody that he would be arrested for pedophilia as soon as he got off the plane in America, so he drop his flight home. City Police notified FBI, who then had his passport canceled so that he could not leave Taiwan and go other places. He apparently TRIED to go to another nation, and was caught because of that.

      BTW, nothing says that he asked for a 16 y.o. girl. Supposedly, he wanted a just turned 17 y.o. to play sugar daddy to.

      --
      I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
  11. Re:Yes by nedlohs · · Score: 5, Informative

    Who is "we"?

    About half the US population live in states where they do not, in fact, imprison people who fuck 16 year old - 31 states set the age of consent at 16.

    14 isn't uncommon in South America and Europe.

    Unsurprisingly, your "we" doesn't actually run the entire world.

  12. Re: Does anyone really believe the government here by UnknownSoldier · · Score: 4, Insightful

    > Someone of the age of 16 is not fully developed.

    Devils advocate: /sarcasm As opposed to someone who is 18 years old?

    Who determines what this "magic age" is? Because it certainly varies from female to female.

    Define "fully developed". Do you mean biologically? Mentally? Emotionally? Because female teenagers mature faster then male teenagers.

    In my limited experience I've known some teeagers who wise WELL beyond their years (behaved like a 40 year old), and known 30 year olds who behaved like dumb teenagers.

    History and numerous civilizations has shown that "if she is old enough to bleed then she is old enough to breed" -- and while we can criticize this past mentality I'm not so sure there is an EXACT "magic" age that determines when a girl becomes a young woman and is fully cognant of the consequences of her choices. Hell, some *adults* aren't even!

    This mentality of equating "16 years old female teenager is a child" depends LARGELY on social norms and subjective judgements. There is no "absolute" test you can do to determine if a female is a woman; it is a gradient.

    That said, probably the *best* way to determine is to ask the father or mother: At what age of your daughter would you feel comfortable knowing she is having sex?

    I'm willing to bet most would say late 20s.

  13. Re:Yes by sootman · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Nope, you are FUCKING (pardon the term) WRONG.

    Age of consent is 16 in MOST states -- 31 of 50, and D.C. It's 17 in 8 states and 18 in just 11.

    https://www.ageofconsent.net/s...

    And it's not like he nabbed her off the street. He met her BECAUSE SHE SIGNED UP ON A HOOKUP SITE. So don't give me any "innocent victim" shit. She wasn't sold into slavery and she wasn't abducted. SHE WENT AND SIGNED UP ON A SITE SO SHE COULD FUCK OLD GUYS AND GET MONEY FOR IT.

    --
    Dear Slashdot: next time you want to mess with the site, add a rich-text editor for comments.
  14. Re:We treat them like children by drinkypoo · · Score: 4, Insightful

    because a) their reasoning abilities aren't fully developed

    Look around you. How many people do you actually believe have fully developed reasoning abilities?

    --
    "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
  15. My loss of trust in law enforcement by Andy+Smith · · Score: 5, Informative

    I got through 43 years without ever being in trouble with the police. Then I got on the wrong side of one police officer, and next time I encountered him he walked over to me and arrested me. Him and a colleague gave written statements that Iâ(TM)d assaulted them. Fortunately there was a recording of my arrest and the prosecution was dropped.

    Itâ(TM)s hard to go through an experience like that, and still take this story at face value. I just donâ(TM)t trust law enforcement anymore.

  16. Re:Yes by fyzikapan · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Pizzagate got "buried" because it was fictional nonsense invented by insane people. I'm not really sure how an armed confrontation constitutes burying it, but nonetheless...

  17. Re: Does anyone really believe the government here by Ol+Olsoc · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Should a 17 year be banned from federal positions for life due to an an alleged wrestling match with a female peer?

    Only if male. If female, it was her choice.

    --
    The shepherds did so well protecting the flock that the sheep no longer believed that wolves existed.
  18. be woman by ArylAkamov · · Score: 4, Interesting

    >Lie about age when signing up to prostitution website
    >Lie about age to man to get money and sex
    >Willingly have sex
    >Willingly take money for that sex
    >Admit to doing all of this, WILLINGLY
    >Claim this was "assault"
    >People actually take your side

    THE ABSOLUTE STATE