Gun thefts surge amid violent crime wave

Telegraph

19 hours ago

The number of guns being stolen from their owners has hit a five-year high amid fears that 'opportunistic' thieves are supplying them to criminals.
Police chiefs have issued a nationwide warning to owners that they must keep their weapons secure because of the risks to the public from their use in 'serious violence' by criminals.
Two men, aged 18 and 41, have been shot dead in two outbreaks of street gun violence in just the last week in London.
Official figures, analysed by The Telegraph, show that the number of shotguns, rifles or pistols stolen last year rose by 24 per cent to 312, equivalent to nearly one a day. That is the highest number for at least five years. Data for previous years is not publicly available.
Over the past five years, some 2,194 legally owned firearms and shotguns were reported lost or stolen. Of these, 1,383 were taken in burglaries or other thefts. Last year, the 312 stolen weapons included 250 shotguns, 36 rifles and three pistols, according to Home Office figures.
Assistant Chief Constable Tim Metcalfe, the National Police Chiefs' Council's (NPCC) lead on firearms, said any lost or stolen firearm could end up in the hands of criminals, posing a direct threat to the public. However, while criminals sought to access weapons, the UK remained the lowest in the world for gun-related criminality.
The number of firearms offences fell last year by 20 per cent to 5,252, according to the Office for National Statistics. However, the number of people killed by guns has remained steady at an average of 28 a year over the past decade. Robbery and violent offences have increased while knife crime is close to its record high.
'A lost or stolen firearm could end up in the hands of criminals who would pose a clear threat to the public. I want to remind gun owners to check their security measures are up to scratch so that they are not inadvertently putting people at risk,' said Mr Metcalfe.
Non-criminals rarely the victims
In its annual threat assessment, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said most firearms discharges were in public spaces such as streets and parks, which increased the risk to members of the public.
'People who are not connected to criminality are rarely the intended victims of firearm discharges, but are on occasion hit by stray bullets or in crossfire. Isolated, tragic incidents are inevitably high profile and lead to a perception of heightened firearms crime in an area,' it said.
Christian Ashwell, the NCA's head of the criminal use of firearms, said: 'Shotguns stolen from residential premises or private vehicles enter the criminal marketplace, but thefts of legally-held firearms remain opportunistic, rather than targeted.'
He said most weapons were smuggled in from abroad. Post and parcels were common methods, while firearms were also imported through ferry routes in small numbers. 'Items ordered online are sometimes legal in the country they are bought from, but illegal in the UK and are frequently detected at the border,' he said.
Nicholas Prosper, 19, murdered his mother, sister and brother in their home in Luton in September with a shotgun bought the day before using a fake licence. He was jailed for life in March.
Firearms licensing was tightened after Jake Davison, 26, shot dead five people in Plymouth in 2021 including his mother, with a shotgun for which he had been granted a licence despite a history of violence and having had it confiscated when he attacked two children a year before the shootings.
A Home Office spokesman said: 'The UK has strong firearms controls and we work tirelessly with partners to stop firearms coming unlawfully into the country and keep them off our streets.
'We are tackling the threat posed by the trafficking and misuse of illicit firearms and keep firearms controls under constant review to address evolving threats.'