sold for $250,000George Zimmerman, the man who shot unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin, is now selling the gun used to kill the 17-year-old. Zimmerman announced Wednesday night that an auction for the gun would begin Thursday, with the opening bid starting at $5,000. And it’s possible that the buyer won’t have to complete a background check to obtain the weapon.
“Prospective bidders, I am honored and humbled to announce the sale of an American Firearm Icon. The firearm for sale is the firearm that was used to defend my life and end the brutal attack from Trayvon Martin on 2/26/2012,” Zimmerman wrote on the auction site, GunBroker.com. “This is a piece of American History. It has been featured in several publications and in current University text books.”
February 26 marked the four-year anniversary of the fatal shooting, which captured the country’s attention and inspired the Black Lives Matter movement. Zimmerman, a self-proclaimed neighborhood watchman saw Martin wearing a hoodie, Skittles and a can of ice tea in hand, and reported him to the police for ‘suspicious” behavior. He ignored instructions from the police dispatcher to not engage with the teenager. Instead, he got into an argument and shot Martin dead.
Zimmerman was acquitted of second degree murder and manslaughter after arguing that he shot Martin in self-defense. He has remained in the spotlight since for a slew of arrests involving domestic violence and multiple assaults.
Due to online gun sale loopholes, private owners generally have free rein to conduct firearm transactions with little oversight. The regulations are less clearcut when it comes to unlicensed sellers than for federally licensed firearms dealers like gun shops (also called FFLs). FFLs have to conduct background checks and can serve as an intermediary between an unlicensed seller and the buyer, but they’re not always required.
Zimmerman’s listing initially said he did not require an FFL, but he later changed it:
When it comes to websites that serve as marketplaces for gun sellers, like GunBroker.com, buyers must complete a background check through an FFL to acquire the gun in order to ship it across state lines from the seller. But if the buyer and the seller live in the same state, they can sometimes skip the background check. Florida doesn’t require unlicensed sellers to perform background checks.
According to Zimmerman, money from the auction will go toward causes he supports.
“I am proud to announce that a portion of the proceeds will be used to: fight BLM violence against Law Enforcement officers, ensure the demise of Angela Correy’s persecution career and Hillary Clinton’s anti-firearm rhetoric,” he said.
This post has been updated to include a screenshot of the Zimmerman listing before he changed the FFL requirement.
Update:
GunBroker.com has removed Zimmerman’s gun from its website.
Update:
On Friday, Zimmerman told KTNV Las Vegas that the gun was sold for $250,000.