1921 Colt Thompson hidden serial number reveal (gangster gun) and barrel removal tutorial

This video shows an original 1921 Colt's Thompson sub machine gun owned by a law enforcement agency in Minnesota. The Thompson's original serial number was chiseled away, and according to ATF paperwork a new IRS serial number was added in 1970. The barrel was removed to reveal the hidden serial number under the grip mount; that original serial number was used to help track this weapon's history. This video shows the method to remove the barrel using the Richardson or Mohawk barrel wrench and receiver vice. Existing research shows this weapon was sold in May 1927 to a fictitious gangster company in Minnesota, and may have been supplied to the Touhy gang. Further research is indicating the weapon was in the possession of a St. Paul MN bootlegger until he was murdered in August 1927. The weapon was apparently stashed in a hidden cache prior to his death, and was later recovered by the owning agency. To date no crimes have been identified that connect to this weapon, although two parallel marks on the receiver indicate notches added after events meaningful to the criminal user. The agency registered the weapon with the IRS in 1934 after the passage of the National Firearms Act.