New York City

Schumer: Gun that looks like iPhone ‘disaster waiting to happen’

4,000 Buyers ‘Ready to Pull the Trigger’ on Disguised .380 Caliber Weapon

April 5, 2016 By Mary Frost Brooklyn Daily Eagle
The Ideal Conceal .380 caliber handgun, above, looks very much like an iPhone when folded, and that worries U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer. Photo courtesy of Ideal Conceal
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U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer on Monday called on the bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate a new handgun that looks almost exactly like an iPhone when folded.

The device fits comfortably in the user’s back pocket like a regular cellphone – but the “Ideal Conceal” is actually a double barreled .380 caliber derringer.

The $395 device is actually cheaper than an iPhone. Schumer says 4,000 buyers are “ready to pull the trigger.”

“The latest ‘great idea’ for a concealed gun should come with 9-1-1 on speed dial because this iPhone gun is a disaster waiting to happen,” Schumer said in a release. “This iPhone-lookalike handgun poses a serious threat to law enforcement, kids and more. Imagine a scenario in which a police officer is not able to tell whether a violent criminal is pulling out a gun or an iPhone.”

The Ideal Conceal company, however, says the handgun is the right product for these troubled times.

“In today’s day and age, carrying a concealed pistol has become a necessity,” the company says on its website. Ideal Conceal stresses that the gun “can be deployed very quickly for the defense of you or your family.”

The faux iPhone answers the demand for handguns “that people can carry on a day to day basis, in a manner that makes carrying a gun easy to do,” Ideal Conceal says. “From soccer moms to professionals of every type, this gun allows you the option of not being a victim.”

The company brags that “Smartphones are EVERYWHERE, so your new pistol will easily blend in with today’s environment. In its locked position it will be virtually undetectable because it hides in plain sight.”

The company adds, however, that buyers must “check your state and local concealment laws” before buying.

Schumer says the gun could be illegal under the National Firearms Act. Typically guns that look like wallets, pens and knives are illegal. Schumer says this gun should fall into the same category.

In addition, if the gun doesn’t show up as a weapon by the types of X-ray machines commonly used at airports, it would be illegal, he speculates. This is yet to be determined by the ATF. The Brooklyn Eagle has reached out to Ideal Conceal for comment. Check back for updates.

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