Stratasys Inc. confiscated the 3D printer they leased to Cody Wilson, the law student behind the Wiki Weapon project. Slate reports …

Turns out the company that leased Defense Distributed its 3-D printer doesn’t see it that way. In a letter to Wilson dated Sept. 26, the legal counsel for Stratasys Inc. informed Wilson that it was cancelling his lease of the company’s uPrint SE printer. “It is the policy of Stratasys not to knowingly allow its printers to be used for illegal purposes,” the company wrote, noting that Wilson lacked a federal license for manufacturing firearms.

Wilson has maintained that he doesn’t need a license, because he’s not planning to sell the weapon. But Stratasys was not impressed. Wired’s Danger Room blog reports that the company’s representatives showed up at his door to seize the device.

Stratasys have been ill advised, both by their legal team (it is legal in many states to manufacture guns for personal use) and by their PR team (see The Streisand Effect). I am sure Cody Wilson was hoping for this kind of mainstream publicity.

[ Many thanks to Matt & Stew for the tip. ]