Fugitive 3D-Gun Advocate Is Busted Overseas

A Texan who made his name as an activist for DIY guns has been arrested in Taiwan and will now face sex charges back in the US. Cody Wilson, who previously courted controversy by selling plans to make 3D-printed guns, was arrested in Taipei on Friday, reports Taiwan News. It seems the 30-year-old had just signed a six-month lease for an apartment, but the real estate agent who handled the deal alerted police when he saw news reports about Wilson. He faces charges of sexual assault involving a 16-year-old girl in Austin, reports the Austin American-Statesman. Authorities say he met the teen through the website SugarDaddyMeet.com and paid her $500 for sex.

Police say Wilson flew to Taiwan after being told by a friend of the teen that he was being investigated for assault, reports the New York Times. When Wilson didn't return to the US on his scheduled flight, police in Austin got word to authorities in Taiwan. He is now in the hands of the National Immigration Agency and expected to be extradited. The Southern Poverty Law Center describes Wilson as a "crypto-anarchist and antigovernment extremist." In addition to founding his 3D-gun company, Defense Distributed, he helped create the secretive but short-lived "Dark Wallet" cryptocurrency platform a few years ago. The SPLC reports that Wilson fled the US with an estimated $1 million in bitcoin. (More sexual assault stories.)