Twenty-six thousand firearms have been permanently removed from circulation after they were destroyed in Vanderbijlpark in the Vaal by the South African Police Service (SAPS).
These include ammunition and firearm parts that had either been seized during crime prevention operations, voluntarily surrendered, or forfeited to the state.
Police spokesperson Colonel Athlenda Mathe says all the destroyed firearms were subjected to ballistic testing to determine if they were used in the commission of a crime.
“The SAPS will continue to intensify its operations to detect and remove illegal firearms and ammunition from the streets of South Africa, as they pose a threat to the safety and security of the inhabitants of this country. The organization, therefore, takes this opportunity to commend members of the public for playing a part in making South Africa a safer place to live in. The Service remains confident that destroying these firearms will ensure that they are permanently removed from circulation,” says Mathe.
