That's actually reasonably close to what happened in the ATF's Operation Fast & Furious. They identified gun shops that they believed would sell to gun runners

That's actually reasonably close to what happened in the ATF's Operation Fast & Furious. They identified gun shops that they believed would sell to gun runners without asking questions, watched the criminals buy guns, and then allowed the guns to be dispersed amongst criminals on both sides of the border without making any meaningful attempts to keep track of the guns.