Japanese toymaker halts air gun sales

TOKYO, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- Tokyo-based Tanaka Works says it has removed its Cassiopeia gun from the market over police concerns the toy could injure or kill.

Tanaka Works believes the gun is safe but has stopped shipping it and will issue a recall, said Yoshimoto Tanaka, the company's president.

Tokyo's Metropolitan Police Department last month seized 800 Cassiopeia's from the toy maker's factory after Internet fans of the gun posted messages saying it could be converted to a lethal weapon if gunpowder was used instead of the gun's pressurized gas cartridge, Yomiuri Shimbun reported Monday.

The Metropolitan Police said their own tests allegedly confirmed the Cassiopeia could be modified to fire consecutive rounds of pellets with force strong enough to potentially wound or kill, Shimbun reported, noting the gun has only been on the market since last July.