THE Oxley area has again ranked among the state’s highest for firearms, with the police district taking second spot for guns handed over in the latest amnesty.
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Oxley police took 93 firearms in the three-month gun amnesty, which wrapped up at the end of September.
The Murray River district was the only policing area to take more than 100 guns off the street, with 128 surrendered to police, with Oxley second.
Some of the weapons surrendered locally included a self-loading revolver and four pistols – which local police say “can be easily concealed by a criminal” – if they fell into the wrong hands.
On Thursday, NSW Police revealed more than 8300 guns – including 413 shotguns and 1373 rifles – were surrendered in the firearms amnesty.
Deputy Commissioner Jeff Loy said the community clearly demonstrated it does not want firearms falling into the wrong hands and putting lives at risk.
“Too many firearms are not stored correctly which makes them an easy target for thieves, particularly in regional and rural properties,” Deputy Commissioner Jeff Loy said.
Police minister Troy Grant said the amnesty said was an opportunity to reduce the number of unregistered guns on the street without being penalised.
“It is of course concerning that these potentially dangerous weapons were once on our streets; however – at the same time, I commend the community for helping us remove them and to ultimately make our neighbourhoods safer,” he said.
Now that the amnesty has finished, anyone caught with an unregistered fiream faces stiff penalties including hefty fines or imprisonment.
Breanna Chillingworth
Northern Daily Leader Senior Crime and Court Reporter
Northern Daily Leader Senior Crime and Court Reporter
