George Zimmerman auctioning gun used to kill Trayvon Martin

SANFORD, Fla. -- George Zimmerman, the man acquitted in the death of Trayvon Martin in 2013, has put the gun used to kill the teenager up for auction.

Zimmerman claimed the 9mm is the same weapon he used to "defend my life and end the brutal attack from Trayvon Martin" on the auction website gunbroker.com.

In 2012, Zimmerman, a neighborhood watchman in Sanford, Florida, shot and killed the 17-year-old boy.

Florida prosecutors attempted to convict Zimmerman of state-level murder and manslaughter charges, but in July 2013 a jury acquitted him, stating prosecutors didn't have enough evidence to prove their case.

On the auction site Zimmerman, declared the pistol an "American firearm icon" and said he was "honored and humbled" to announce its sale.

In the description of the firearm, Zimmerman claimed the money raised during the auction would be used to "fight BLM (Black Lives Matter) violence against law enforcement officers, ensure the demise of Angela Corey's persecution career and Hillary Clinton's anti-firearm rhetoric."

The auction is set to begin at 11 a.m. on Thursday with the starting price set at $5,000.

Since his acquittal, Zimmerman has had several brushes with the law, including allegations of assault by girlfriends, and his wife claiming he smashed her iPad. Charges were either dropped or not pursued because of a lack of evidence in those cases.

In 2015, Zimmerman was injured after being involved in a shooting stemming from a road rage dispute with a driver in Seminole County, Florida.