Police destroy 18k firearms in a week

Police destroy 18k firearms in a week

Police say more than 65 000 guns that were in the hands of criminals are off the streets.

Police destroy 18k firearms in a week
SAPS

This follows a 12-month anti-crime drive to detect and seize illegal firearms.


Police last week destroyed over 18 000 weapons.


In March and July last year, 26 000 and 20 590 guns were destroyed, respectively.


READ: Firearm ownership legislation needs tightening - Gun Free SA


National spokesperson Athlenda Mathe says the firearms they confiscated were taken for ballistic testing to determine if they were used to commit crimes.


"These are firearms, most of which include handguns, rifles and shotguns, as well as firearm parts and combination firearms.


"These had either been seized during crime prevention and Intelligence-driven operations, voluntarily surrendered or forfeited to the state during the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 firearms amnesty period."

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