Registered firearms confiscated

Police seized two registered firearms and ammunition from owners in Dondotha under uMfolozi Municipality on Tuesday for contravention of the Firearms Act.

Police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said a police search and seizure operation was conducted by the provincial Operational Response Services (ORS), Public Order Policing (POP) officers from Empangeni, and Crime Intelligence officers from Dondotha.

“Police went into a homestead in Dondotha where a firearm with 15 rounds of ammunition was found wrapped in a T-shirt and hidden in a couch inside an unlocked room.

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“A search at another house led to the recovery of a firearm with eight rounds of ammunition.

“The owner of the firearm had a licence that expired in 2018 and no safe in his house. The firearms will be subjected to ballistic testing to ascertain if they were used in the commission of crimes,” he said.

Netshiunda added that a 30-year-old suspect was arrested after being found in possession of illegal firearms and ammunition during the same operation.

He made his first court appearance in the KwaMbonambi Periodical Court on Tuesday, and was remanded in police custody pending an investigation.

“The suspect was found in possession of a firearm with 14 rounds of ammunition, and preliminary investigations revealed the firearm belonged to the police service and was not issued to any officer.

“There are no records indicating the firearm was reported missing or stolen. Investigations are under way to determine how the firearm ended up in the hands of the suspect.” he said.

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