Waymo pulls over juvenile riders carrying ghost gun

On September 12, 2026, Los Angeles County police arrested three juveniles after discovering a ghost gun in a Waymo autonomous vehicle that was being used as a rideshare service. The vehicle, operating in the city’s downtown corridor, was found to contain an unregistered, 3‑dollar “ghost” firearm that had been illegally assembled from a 3‑dollar gun kit. The juveniles, all under the age of 18, were charged with possession of an unregistered firearm and related offenses, and the case was referred to the county district attorney’s office for further action.

The incident prompted an immediate review of Waymo’s security protocols for its autonomous rideshare fleet. Waymo’s spokesperson stated that the company has implemented a multi‑layered safety system that includes vehicle‑level sensors, driver‑monitoring software, and real‑time traffic monitoring, but that the presence of a ghost gun indicates a lapse in the vehicle’s physical security measures. California law prohibits the possession of unregistered firearms, and the state’s recent legislation on ghost guns imposes strict penalties for the manufacturing and sale of such weapons. The discovery has raised concerns among regulators about the potential for illicit weapons to be introduced into autonomous vehicles, which are designed to operate without a human driver.

Waymo has pledged full cooperation with law enforcement and is conducting an internal audit of its vehicle security protocols. The Los Angeles Police Department is continuing its investigation to determine how the ghost gun entered the vehicle and whether other vehicles in the fleet may have been compromised. The case underscores the need for robust security measures in autonomous transportation systems and highlights the ongoing challenges of enforcing gun‑control laws in a rapidly evolving technology landscape.