The Spokesman-Review reports:

This spring, a man in King County posted an ad on an online gun market, seeking a 9mm handgun.

“Cash in hand for the right deal,” he wrote.

Around the same time, a man in Tacoma posted an ad saying he was “always looking for guns.” A Vancouver man posted an ad seeking to buy pistols. A Longview man posted an ad seeking a lower receiver for an assault rifle.

Each of the men was legally prohibited from owning firearms due to criminal convictions – burglary, robbery, rape, assault on a police officer. None could pass a background check with a licensed dealer, but online sales, like gun show sales, are a complete black market. No questions asked.

. . .

Background checks are not some perfect solution. Of course. But the report reinforces two indisputable facts: Criminals do, in fact, try to buy guns from registered dealers, and FBI background checks block the sales. And criminals do, in fact, try to buy guns through the side channels where background checks are not required.

Read the full story here.