Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Bureau of, is a law enforcement agency within the United States Department of Justice dedicated to preventing terrorism and reducing violent crime. The bureau, often called the ATF, enforces federal laws involving firearms and explosives, arson and bombings, and illegal trafficking of alcohol and tobacco products.
Most ATF criminal cases involve people suspected of the illegal possession and use of firearms and explosives. Targets of investigation include killers for hire, gun smugglers, bombers, and arsonists. ATF special agents go undercover to break up illegal commerce in firearms, drug smuggling rings, outlaw motorcycle gangs, and other criminal groups. The ATF works closely with other law enforcement agencies. The ATF also regulates the sale, possession, and transportation of firearms, ammunition, explosives, liquor, and tobacco in interstate commerce.
The ATF was chartered as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms in 1972. It acquired its present name in 2003. Its headquarters are in Washington, D.C.
