A deadly arsenal is off our streets
Guns handed into Paisley police station
Cops have hailed a firearms amnesty that saw more than 40 guns taken off the streets.
Police Scotland’s Firearms Surrender initiative ended with 41 firearms or shotguns being handed in, along with 25 airguns and 12 lots of ammo across Renfrewshire and Inverclyde.
Across Scotland, 474 guns were removed from circulation, as well as 690 airguns and 337 sets of ammunition during the scheme, which ran between June 18 and July 1.
The amnesty allowed people to hand in weapons and ammo for which they may not have had a licence without fear of prosecution.
Paisley police office was one of a number of nominated drop-off points across the country and specially trained firearms officers collected them on a daily basis.
People are not exempt from prosecution for any crimes that may have been committed using the weapon.
Superintendent Simon Wright, who is based in Paisley police station at Mill Street, insists the scheme has removed the potential for the weapons to get into the wrong hands.
He said: “Initiatives like the Firearms Surrender Campaign are a really effective way for members of the public to dispose of weapons safely.
Our communities are safer for the removal of these weapons Superintendent Simon Wright
“There are many reasons why people may possess such items and while they do, there is always the potential that they may fall into the wrong hands.
“I would therefore like to thank the public for their cooperation with this initiative and undoubtedly our communities are safer for the removal and subsequent destruction of the surrendered weapons.”
Scotland Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf was delighted with the results.
He said: “This successful firearms surrender campaign has seen the removal of more than 1,500 unwanted weapons from our communities – stopping them falling into the wrong hands.
“Whilst firearms offences are at historically low levels in Scotland, we will continue to work with Police Scotland to keep Scotland’s streets safe.”