Gun amnesty seeks to round up illegal pistols

An amnesty has been granted as police seek to take several types of gun commonly used in shootings off the streets.

Possession of Turkish-made Retay, Ekol, Blow and Ceonic ISSC models is illegal in the UK, even if they were previously bought legally.

Greater Manchester Police said anyone dropping off the pistols will not face criminal prosecution if they surrender them before the end of the four-week national amnesty, which ends on 28 February.

The weapons fire blanks but can be converted to fire live rounds and more than 800 have been used in criminal circumstances – and at least four killings – in the UK in the past two years, the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) said.

Det Supt Joe Harrop said: “As soon as the amnesty ends, anyone who stills owns one of these firearms could be facing up to 10 years in prison.”

The NPCC said in some circumstances the guns may have been “held in innocence and ignorance of their illegality or may be overlooked or forgotten in people’s homes”.

It added: “The amnesty gives holders the chance to dispose of them safely.”

Det Supt Harrop, who leads GMP’s team that recoveres firearms, said: “In Greater Manchester, we haven’t had many incidents involving [these guns], but it’s always a possibility, like with any firearm, these could end up in the wrong hands.”

He said the force had seized 61 converted models in the past three years.

People are advised to drop off the firearms at the front desk of any police station and place them in a bag or a box to prevent alarming members of the public and to ensure safety.