Hundreds of ninja swords surrendered to police

Police said hundreds of ninja swords were handed in during an amnesty

Hundreds of ninja swords were handed in to a police force during a month-long amnesty.

Devon and Cornwall Police said it received 287 ninja swords and 56 other bladed weapons in July during a surrender and compensation scheme involving forces across England and Wales.

The Home Office-led project was carried out ahead of ninja swords, defined as being 14-24in (35.5-61cm) from handle to tip with a straight edge blade, being made illegal to own on 1 August.

Det Insp Kevin Morley, who co-ordinated the scheme in Devon and Cornwall, said he was surprised and delighted with the response the project had.

Det Insp Morley said Devon and Cornwall did not have as much knife crime as other areas but he acknowledged there had been "horrendous" incidents in the region.

"In context, it's not a problem, but one death is one death too many," he said.

"We have a problem with knife carrying more than knife crime, but what's really important is we don't just sleepwalk into a knife pandemic and we keep the energy going."

Police said swords and knives could still be surrendered in bins at police stations, but the compensation would no longer be available.

The law introduced on 1 August made it an offence to possess a ninja sword unless a specific legal defence applied.

Possessing a ninja sword could lead to a prison sentence of up to six months, potentially increasing to two years under new measures.

Carrying a weapon in public already carries a penalty of up to four years in jail.