Lethal Ninja blades on Fidget variation

POLICE are cracking down on ninja throwing stars children have been passing off as fidget spinner toys at northern NSW schools.

Tweed police say they have confiscated a handful of the imported fidget knives.

Fidget spinners, costing less than $10, have become a craze in school playgrounds.

They resemble three circular magnets attached to a base that, when balanced on a finger, can be spun on its axis.

However, authorities say dangerous variations are being bought online from Indonesia and making their way into classrooms.

“Obviously, there are a lot that get sold through the shops that are fidget spinners, but these ones are a bit more sinister,” a Tweed Byron Local Area Command duty officer said.

“They’re like knives, they’re sharp and they do fall under the classification of a prohibited weapon.”

The weapons police are seizing have multiple prongs, but instead of circular vertexes, have blades that officers fear could do serious damage in the wrong hands.

Although the penalty for some of the worst offences is a maximum 14 years in jail, children found with the “star knives” would likely receive a caution.

“Our school liaison officer has been working with schools in relation to this,” the duty officer said. “He works a lot with the schools and he’s initially brought it to our attention.

“I’m not sure of every incident but I would think if they were children, they would probably get cautioned.

“With the young offenders act, you don’t put them straight before the court in the first instance.”