Over 150 illegal firearms seized in KZN in February
"We urge the community to report all those in possession of unlicensed firearms within their communities to the police"
Police in KwaZulu conducted operations aimed at eliminating the spread of unlicensed firearms in the province. From February 1 – 28, police confiscated a total of 154 firearms with an assortment of 1159 rounds of ammunition in different operations conducted around the province. A total of 161 suspects were arrested during the operations that were conducted in Ekombe, Upper Tugela, Msinga, Hluhluwe, Highflats, Hammersdale Umlazi, KwaMashu, Phoenix and other areas.
Recovered firearms include 136 pistols, 14 high calibre firearms and four homemade firearms. All arrested suspects appeared in different magistrates’ courts. The firearms have been sent for ballistic testing to determine whether they were used in the commission of crime in the country or can assist in solving pending cases.
“These operations aimed at eradicating the proliferation of unlicensed firearms will continue to make the province safer for the citizens. We urge the community to report all those in possession of unlicensed firearms within their communities to the police since confiscation of those firearms will save unnecessary loss of lives as well as other serious and violent crimes,” said the KwaZulu-Natal Acting Provincial Commissioner, Major General Bheki Langa.
