In the release of our second video in the Firearms Safety campaign, we are taking a moment to respond to some of the questions raised on our Facebook page yesterday, Queensland Police say.
The safety of Queenslanders is our priority. The focus of the campaign is on encouraging all members of the community to play their part in helping us create a safe environment.
"Gun theft is a concern to us. It is not our intention to scare anyone nor are we looking to target any particular area. Our campaign is focused on encouraging all registered and licensed firearms holders of the need to keep their firearms secure and their details up to date.
"We will continue to proactively address gun theft and gun crime with targeted operations, a commitment to strong policy and partnerships with our Commonwealth and state partner agencies. However we need the support of all firearms holders in helping us prevent this theft from occurring in the first instance,"
Detective Inspector Lance Vercoe of the Organised Crime Group and Acting Sergeant Clayton Bradford of the Weapons Licensing Branch have provided answers to some of the questions below:
Question:
Can QPS share the data that shows how many registered firearms there are in Qld and how many are stolen and not recovered each year in QLD? And if available how many stolen firearms have been known to be used in crimes?
Response:
There are approximately 812,000 registered weapons in Queensland. The figure fluctuates with ongoing registration and deregistration of firearms. Last year there were 721 firearms reported as stolen in Queensland and historically we recover between 20% – 22%. That said, police locate and seize a large number of weapons during the course of their duties which have been defaced or altered to the point there is no capacity to identify the history of the weapon or to determine if the weapon was stolen. In terms of stolen firearms used in crimes, the same issue applies with many criminals defacing their guns (removing serial numbers) to ensure police cannot identify its history.
The Queensland Police Service also test firearms to identify if the weapon has been involved in any criminal offence.
In terms of illegally made and imported firearms the QPS has identified some individuals involved in the manufacture of weapons however in general terms this represents a small proportion of weapons seized by police.
Question:
As part of the license process the applicant has to have met requirements for firearms storage, at present this is an honesty system. Can there be a policy change that the safe /storage facility has to be professionally installed and proof is supplied as part of the application? Would tick so many boxes!
Response:
The Queensland Police Service requires applicants to declare they have access to secure storage at the time of application. In addition to the licensee’s responsibility to maintain such secure storage for any firearms held on their licence, the QPS also carries out storage inspections and audits of firearms for licensee’s. This storage audit continues in each region on an ongoing basis. Today’s message also includes the need for licensee’s to be vigilant in how they lock and secure their storage to prevent unauthorised access.
Question:
Be interesting to see exactly how many stolen firearms are recovered from known criminals.
Response:
That’s an interesting question. The difficulty is that many firearms we locate in the possession of criminals have been defaced to the point of being unable to determine their origin.
Question:
Can I suggest that QPS provide up to date inventory. I have not been sent one in years
Response:
Licensee’s can request a copy of their weapons list by emailing Weapons Licensing with their licence details and name from the email address they have nominated with Weapons Licensing. A re-print of the list will then be forwarded.
Question:
Licensed shooters secure our firearms, it is part of the condition of maintaining our licenve and you are able to check up on this any time you please, how about instead of making victims of crime the target of your departments ire, you get to the task of doing your job, we have just as much right as anyone else to be protected from theft, you also have an obligation to do everything in your power to prevent or solve these crimes. Stop laying the blame anywhere but with the people committing crimes and stop trying to hamper our sport
Response:
Thanks for the comment. We are certainly not looking to "hamper your sport" nor are we laying blame at anyone with this campaign. As I said (in the press conference livestreamed on our page), we have a very healthy firearm culture in Queensland, with the vast majority of firearms holders responsible in their use and storage of firearms. Unfortunately not everyone is as disciplined. I have seen too many instances where firearms have been stolen primarily due to limited security, or no security for their firearms. This campaign is aimed at reinforcing to all licensed firearms holders the importance of being vigilant to prevent their firearms falling into the wrong hands.
