Tom
'...Scotland Yard yesterday started a month-long 'surrender' scheme, urging young men and boys or their relatives to hand in replica guns at police stations anonymously, in an attempt to stem rising gun crime..."
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500,000 Fake Guns Flooding Britain Every Year...
and that's just through ONE port
Up to half a million replica guns are flooding into Britain each year through a single port, police have revealed.
Uzis, Berettas and AK47 rifles are among the huge stash of firearms shipped in from across the globe by importers at Felixstowe, Suffolk.
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Surrender your guns: Met Chief Sir Ian Blair poses witha real uzi, right, and an imitation weapon at Monday's launch of the Met's four-week campaign
Though some are sold on legally, police fear most are falling into the hands of criminals who use them to intimidate victims.
Many imitation weapons can be converted into real guns in a matter of hours, although police say this is not the case with the guns brought in through Felixstowe.
Half of all gun crime, including street robberies, involves imitation weapons that have either been converted to fire deadly live ammunition or look so realistic that even police cannot tell they are fakes.
Scotland Yard yesterday started a month-long 'surrender' scheme, urging young men and boys or their relatives to hand in replica guns at police stations anonymously, in an attempt to stem rising gun crime.
The scheme is aimed at tackling the easy availability of replica guns on London streets and enforcing legislation introduced in October which makes it an offense to manufacture, import or sell realistic imitation guns.
The maximum sentence for carrying a replica gun in public has been increased from six months to a year. Ball bearing guns, cap guns, blank-firing pistols, airguns and 'airsoft' guns - which fire plastic ball bearings and are used at accredited game centres - are all included in the laws.
One mother has already been to a police station in South-East London-and handed in 19 replica guns she found in her son's bedroom.
Detective Chief Superintendent Barry Norman, of the Violent Crime Directorate, said there were 30 or 40 importers at Felixstowe each bringing in about 1,000 guns a month.
He said: 'We don't know yet exactly how many are coming in. But if you're looking at a thousand a time, then the numbers quickly become vast. Some of these will be destined for legal means but my assumption is that a great many are destined for illegal outlets.'
The Met will also crack down on the market stalls and shops where replica guns are mainly sold. Officers will carry out test purchases on companies selling them on the internet and prosecute suppliers.
Commissioner Sir Ian Blair said: 'Imitation weapons cause fear and distress on our streets and I would urge our communities to take this chance to get rid of them.
'While overall crime in London has significantly decreased, this campaign is aimed at young people whose lives are being blighted by gun culture and imitation firearms are an intrinsic part of that.'[/img]
What's next, scary movies? Acne? Angry expressions? How far will they extend the definitions of "cause fear and distress" ? Where does it end with these soft-headed pinko libs?
Reminds me of a quote I read recently, 'they are but beasts'.