On his July visit to New Zealand, FBI Director Kash Patel presented gifts to the country’s top police and intelligence officials that turned out to be illegal under local firearms laws — 3D-printed pistols embedded in decorative display stands. The weapons, which New Zealand authorities deemed potentially operable, were promptly confiscated and destroyed.
Patel, the most senior Trump administration official to travel to New Zealand so far, was in Wellington to open the FBI’s first standalone office in the country. During his meetings, he handed the displays to Police Commissioner Richard Chambers, New Zealand Security Intelligence Service Director-General Andrew Hampton, and Government Communications Security Bureau Director-General Andrew Clark.
While the FBI declined to comment, Chambers confirmed the replicas had been examined by gun regulators, who determined they could potentially be modified into working firearms. “To ensure compliance with firearms laws, I instructed Police to retain and destroy them,” Chambers said. Under New Zealand law, even inoperable weapons are treated as restricted firearms if they can be altered for use.
The gift highlighted New Zealand’s stringent gun culture, especially after the 2019 Christchurch mosque massacre, which killed 51 worshipers and spurred a sweeping crackdown on semiautomatic weapons. Pistols remain tightly regulated, requiring special permits. Unlike the United States, New Zealand views gun ownership as a privilege, not a right, and everyday citizens — and even frontline police — rarely carry firearms.
A spokesperson for the intelligence agencies described the gift as a “challenge coin display stand” that happened to feature the pistol replica as part of its design. While some observers dismissed the controversy as an overreaction, the destruction underscored how seriously New Zealand treats gun compliance.
Patel’s visit already drew attention when news of the FBI’s new Wellington office was revealed only after its opening, raising questions about transparency. His remarks suggesting the office would help counter China’s influence in the South Pacific further unsettled Wellington, where officials stressed the FBI presence was meant to enhance cooperation against child exploitation and drug trafficking. Beijing, meanwhile, condemned Patel’s comments.
Public records show Patel met with more than a dozen senior officials and ministers during his visit, though it remains unclear how many received the controversial gifts. For New Zealand, the episode reinforced its hard line on firearms, even when the giver was one of the world’s most powerful law enforcement figures.