Sidney Island Deer Cull Used CZ Bren 2 Ms Rifles and 30-Round Mags

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CZ Bren 2 Ms 223 REM, 11″ Barrel. Source: CZ

(Update May 10: Adds details on Bren 2 Ms from RCMP.)

TheGunBlog.ca — The Canadian government said its contractors for a deer cull on Sidney Island in British Columbia last December used CZ Bren 2 Ms rifles and 30-round ammo magazines, reasonable gear choices that are illegal for government-licensed hunters.

Why It Matters

  • Parks Canada Agency’s exclusive statements to TheGunBlog.ca detail the firearms, ammunition, and magazines used, and provide important context.
  • The information contradicts commenters who claimed the contractors had used AR-15 rifles, or automatic rifles.
  • To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time these details are being reported publicly.

Guns and Ammo

‘Restricted’ Bren 2 Ms

  • Parks Canada said its contractors used semi-automatic CZ Bren 2 Ms rifles chambered in .223 Remington.
  • The Liberals assign the specific rifle edition used to their arbitrary legal category of “Restricted,” making it a crime for hunters to use.
  • The Liberals authorize hunters to use a version with a longer barrel and the made-up and misleading legal label of “Non-Restricted.”

AR-15 Mags and Ammo

  • The Bren 2 Ms is designed to take standard 30-round AR-15 mags and ammo, and can also receive shorter mags and other ammo.
  • The contractors used both 30-rounders and 10-rounders limited (“pinned”) to 5 cartridges.
  • It’s a crime for any government-licensed firearm owner to have an AR-15 magazine that can hold 30 cartridges.

TheGunBlog.ca Questions

  • TheGunBlog.ca asked Parks Canada on April 10 for details of the guns, mags and ammo used in the Sidney Island deer cull.
  • Megan Hope, a spokesperson for the parks service, e-mailed their first detailed reply on April 16, and replied to our follow-up questions last week.
  • Note: The semi-automatic AR-15 is one of the most-popular rifles worldwide for everything from hunting and sport to protection and defence.

Parks Canada Responds

April 16

Automatic rifles, like the AR-15, are prohibited in Canada and were not considered for this project. No prohibited or banned firearms were used.

The firearm used in Phase 1 was the CZ BREN 2. The CZ Bren 2 is a restricted firearm that can only be used in Canada if appropriate authorities have been granted. In this case, the appropriate authorities were granted by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Province of British Columbia. The ammunition used was LeHigh Defense Controlled Chaos .223 copper. All necessary statutory and regulatory authorities were granted for this operation, including permits granted by Parks Canada, Transport Canada, the Province of British Columbia and the RCMP.

Semi-automatic firearms of this style are the standard used in professional ungulate eradication operations around the world. They are chosen because they are reliable, least prone to jamming, can be fitted with a quality suppressor that reduces the level of stress for the animals and their awareness of the eradication activity, and have a magazine of sufficient size so that reloading isn’t necessary in the middle of the work.

May 02, Follow-Up on 30-Round Mags

The markspeople were granted permission to use 30-round magazines under their Firearms Business Licence, issued by the Chief Firearms Officer (RCMP). During Phase I of the project, a 30-round magazine was only used by one aerial marksman. While conducting ground-based operations the marksmen used 10 round capacity magazines that were pinned to hold 5 rounds.

May 03, Follow-Up on Bren 2 Ms

I can confirm it was the CZ Bren 2 Ms used.

…

The BREN 2 Ms comes with different barrel lengths. The longer barrels make it non-restricted. The version used during Phase 1 had a shorter barrel (due to operating in close confines in a helicopter etc.), which made it restricted.

—Source: Parks Canada, Responses to TheGunBlog.ca, 16 April 2024, 02 May 2024, and 03 May 2024

Analysis and Opinion

  • Cull Vs. Hunt. A cull is different than a hunt. The tools and tactics can be the same or different. The regulatory requirements are usually different.
  • Hypocrisy: The gear choice would be a minor issue if not for the governing Liberal Party of Canada’s criminalization of hunters, ranchers, farmers, sport shooters, and other government-licensed gun owners using identical tools.
  • For greater certainty: There’s nothing necessarily right or wrong about a set of tools. The problem is inventing an authoritarian, arbitrary, convoluted and costly regime to criminalize honest citizens acting safely, responsibly, and beneficially.

RCMP CFP Provides Additional Context

  • TheGunBlog.ca asked the RCMP on May 03 for its opinion of the legal classification history of the CZ Bren 2 Ms in Canada.
  • Robin Percival, a spokeswoman for the Ottawa-based department, e-mailed the following response by the RCMP Canadian Firearms Program on May 10:

RCMP CFP Responds

The CZ, CZ Bren 2 Ms model was introduced in 2020 as a purpose-built, semi-automatic version of the full automatic CZ, CZ Bren 2 model.

The firearm is a semi-automatic, center-fire firearm. It is currently available in calibres 5.56MM NATO (223 Remington), and 7.62×39 Russian with a detachable box magazine, in both 5- and 30-round capacities. 

The record was first published in the Firearms Reference Table (FRT) on 2020-03-30 with a restricted classification due to barrel lengths available at the time.

Updates to the record have taken place since first publication to reflect new information, such as additional combinations of calibres and barrel lengths. With the introduction of longer barrel lengths, the model is either restricted or non-restricted, depending on barrel length.

The make/model can be found under FRN 196384 in the FRT (attached).

—Source: RCMP Canadian Firearms Program, Response to TheGunBlog.ca, 10 May 2024

CZ Bren 2 Ms Listing in RCMP Firearms Reference Table (FRT)

Source: RCMP Firearms Reference Table, Public PDF Version

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