41 paintball guns stolen

Raiders snatch assault rifle-type weapons

Dozens of paintball guns that can be “extremely dangerous in the wrong hands” have been stolen from a business on the outskirts of Aberdeen.

A total of 41 guns were taken from a paintballing business storage container on farmland near the B977 Dyce to Kintore road.

The theft was discovered at around 3pm on Monday, when the owner checked the container.

As well as the 41 guns, two boxes of paintballs were also found to be missing.

The paintball guns look like real weaponry with the addition of gas canisters and ammunition chambers for the pellets of paint they fire.

Aberdeen Donside MSP Mark McDonald warned against the use of the guns, which he said can prove very harmful if misused.

He said: “Paintball guns can cause serious injuries and can be extremely dangerous in the wrong hands.

“I hope they are able to be recovered in order to prevent their misuse and that anyone with information will alert the police.”

Among the stolen items include a number of BT-4 Combat guns, several black BT Omega guns, a black DYE SP-1 gun with a laser site attached, a green BT TM-7 gun with a green sling attached, and a BT model gun with a name engraved on its long barrel.

Detective Sergeant John Lumsden urged anyone who has seen the guns, or has heard of them being sold, to come forward.

He said: “Paintballing is a popular pastime and these items may be circulated or even offered for sale.

“I would like to stress that although these items cannot be converted into viable firearms, they could cause harm if used by inexperienced people.

“We are keen to speak to anyone with information about any of the items described.”

Anyone with information should call 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

WARNING: While they can’t be converted into viable weapons, the paintball guns with the addition of gas canisters could still pose a threat to the public in the wrong hands

The theft was found when the container was checked