Durban — King Cetshwayo District Commissioner Major General PS Ngubane has revealed that more than 1 000 deceased estate firearms are in circulation and being used illegally and all those firearms need to be surrendered to the SAPS.
Speaking on Icora FM, Major General Ngubane said they have recently started a campaign urging the community of King Cetshwayo to surrender these firearms to their nearest police stations.
“We have found that there are more than 1 000 deceased-owned firearms that have not been surrendered in King Cetshwayo District. We have started the campaign, urging community members to surrender these firearms to their nearest police stations.
“It is illegal to use these firearms without a permit. What is common is that when a family owned the firearm, then died, someone in the family will continue to use that firearm without having a permit, which is illegal,” said Major General Ngubane.
No charges will be pressed against those who surrender the deceased estate firearms, he stressed.
“Deceased estate firearm surrenders won’t see arrests. We will go through the process to confirm the owner of the firearms, then write the statement of surrendering the firearm. I also want to ask the people to be very cautious of criminals who would want to take advantage, acting as police officers.
“Not every police officer will go around the community asking for firearms. There will be a certain police officer team tasked with this campaign. Also, there is a legit process of surrendering firearms, where you will need to write a statement with all the necessary details, including dates and to get the serial number,” he said.
He urged the community to apply for a firearm permit, before using the deceased estate firearm. If you are found using the deceased estate firearm you will be charged and arrested.
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Daily News