Over 150 guns, 1600 rounds seized since January
KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) — Up to March 11 this year, some 163 illegal guns and 1,684 rounds of ammunition had been seized.
This was disclosed by Minister of National Security Robert Montague, during the handing over of a BULLETTRAX-3D System to the Institute of Forensic Science and Legal Medicine, in Kingston, today.
Montague said during the corresponding period last year, 118 illegal guns and 1,592 rounds of ammunition were seized.
“We are making progress in taking the illegal weapons and ammunition off the streets, but that is not good enough. We must get to the supply which is the root cause of our problems, because the more we take up, it also tells us that more is coming in,” he said.
The minister said that last year, more than 700 illegal guns were taken off the streets and 8,721 rounds of ammunition seized under the Get the Guns campaign.
“We are working very hard to dry up the supply of illicit firearms and ammunition in Jamaica,” he said.
Montague said the Government has been working very closely with international partners to stop the flow of illicit firearms and ammunition in Jamaica.
In the meantime, he said a review of the Firearms Licensing Authority (FLA) has been undertaken, while the operations have been “tightened” to ensure that legal gun owners are properly vetted, appropriately trained in the handling and keeping of firearms and are held accountable.
“Legal gun owners cannot enable criminal access to guns and ammunition through negligence or irresponsible actions. Every firearm and every round of ammunition in the country will be properly accounted for. We cannot stamp out the scourge of crime and murders in Jamaica unless we overcome our gun problem,” the minister said.
He added that 70 per cent of the murders committed in Jamaica involve the use of firearms.
Under the Get the Guns campaign, the police intercept illegal firearms entering the island as well as recover guns from criminals. Monetary rewards are offered to the public for information that leads to the seizure of the weapons.
