Cache of blank firing guns handed in to police

More than 40 illegal blank firing guns were handed into Surrey and Sussex police stations in February

More than 40 guns which fire blanks were handed into Surrey Police and Sussex Police following a four-week firearms amnesty.

The plea for Turkish-manufactured top-venting blank firers (TVBFs) ran the entire month of February.

The weapons are legal for over-18s to buy in the UK without a license however testing has shown some, prohibited brands are possible to convert into viable handguns.

Surrey Police and Sussex Police Firearms and Explosive Licensing Unit said 42 illegal TVBFs were handed in to stations during the amnesty.

Possession of prohibited brands - Retay, Ekol, Ceonic and Blow - can carry sentences of up to 10 years.

Legal TBVFs have a fully blocked barrel which can only discharge blanks and they are also recognisable as they are partially painted a bright colour.

Illegal versions have been adapted to fire live rounds and are sometimes painted black to resemble a real handgun.

According to police, converted blank firers have been used in at least four homicides in the UK in the last two years.

Ch Insp Kara Tombling said: "We want to reassure the public that gun crime in Surrey and Sussex remains very rare, and the number of firearms handed in reflect that.

"The seizure of these illegal top-venting blank firers will go a significant way to help protect the public.

"The amnesty is now over, but other unwanted, unlicensed firearms and ammunition may be surrendered to police at any time following normal firearms surrender processes."