Armed cop call-outs hits new record
Record numbers of armed officers have been used to attend serious incidents and court trials.
Officers carrying guns were called out on 446 separate occasions between April 2018 and March last year, according to Police Scotland figures.
That compares with 434 call-outs in 2017-18, 260 in 2016-17 and 341 in 2016-17.
It is the largest deployment of firearms units since the national force was formed seven years ago.
The most recent figures show armed response teams were called out 375 times between April and September.
The statistics include armed officers being dispatched to the High Court in Glasgow to increase security at organised crime trials.
Six men were jailed for the attempted murder of five rivals linked to the Daniel crime group, including Steven “Bonzo” Daniel following a 14-week trial.
In 2018, nine men, some of whom are linked to the Daniel family, were jailed for 87 years amid tight security. Superintendent Steven Irvine said: “Armed response vehicles (ARVs) can be deployed for spontaneous incidents, preplanned operations and also to ensure safety and security at certain events and high profile court cases and trials long-running, high-profile court trials.” On Monday, armed police were called to a shooting incident at a home in Flynn Gardens in Stepps, near Glasgow. No one was injured.
On December 21, a man was arrested outside Nico’s bar in central Glasgow over claims door staff were threatened with a pistol.
Scots Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: “There’s an increasing problem with organised crime that has to be addressed.” Graeme Pearson, the former head of the Scottish Crime and Drug Enforcement Agency, said: “The statistics reflect the wider access to firearms on the part of criminals across Scotland.
That justifies increased allocation of firearms to police.”