The SAPS are set to destroy nearly 16 000 firearms in Vanderbijlpark; 12 502 are handguns, while 1 921 are rifles, 1 305 shotguns, and 47 combination firearms.

The Deputy National Commissioner for Policing, Lieutenant General Tebello Mosikili, will officiate the official destruction process this morning.

The firearms and ammunition were seized during policing operations such as Operation Shanela and subsequently forfeited to state authority.

Other firearms are linked to finalised cases related to violence against women and children, CIT robberies, as well as voluntarily surrendered firearms and those handed in during the amnesty period.

These firearms have already been subjected to Integrated Ballistic Identification System (IBIS) testing to determine whether they are linked to other crimes committed.