Amnesty for blank firing guns after law change with Shropshire owners facing potential 10-year sentence
Residents in Shropshire who own a particular type of blank firing pistol are being urged to hand them in during an amnesty following a law change - or risk up to 10 years in jail.
Bruni Top-Venting Blank Firers (TVBF) were legal to purchase in the UK by people over 18. In their original state, they are designed to discharge only blank cartridges and are often brightly coloured to distinguish them from real firearms.
TVBFs are blank-firing guns with fully blocked barrels, designed solely to discharge blank cartridges.
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However, the the National Crime Agency (NCA) and police, have identified five models that have been shown to be readily convertible and therefore illegal.
A firearms amnesty is set to take place across all of England and Wales, starting on Monday, February 2 and running until Friday, February 27.
During the four-week amnesty, members of the public are encouraged to take certain models of Bruni top/side venting blank firing (TVBFs) imitation firearms into specific police stations and hand them over the front counter.
After the amnesty, anyone found in possession of one could face a prison sentence of up to ten years.
Detective Chief Inspector Joanne Woods of West Mercia Police said: “Gun crime in the West Mercia Police force area remains very rare but we are not complacent, which is why we are supporting the Bruni TVBF firearms amnesty, after tests have shown they can be readily converted into firearms, therefore making them illegal to possess.
“Surrendering these weapons now will help prevent them getting into the wrong hands in the future and being used by criminals, so we want as many top-venting blank firers as possible to be handed in.
“Together with our partners we continually work hard to educate people about firearms and the dangers that come with them, to ensure that gun crime doesn’t become prevalent in the future.”
Residents in Shropshire can hand over Bruni TVBF at Shrewsbury Police Station and Telford Police Station in Malinsgate until February 27.
Other stations where the weapons can be handed in at Hereford Police Station in Bath Street, Hereford, Kidderminster Police Station in Habberley Road, Kidderminster and Worcester Police Station in Castle Street, Worcester.
