More than 110 firearms were surrendered in the Devon and Cornwall area as part of a national firearms surrender.

Running from Thursday 12 May to Sunday 29 May, the national firearms surrender operation saw 115 firearms, nine imitation firearms, as well as a significant amount of ammunition and component parts handed into Devon and Cornwall Police.

The national campaign, instigated by the National Ballistics Intelligence Service (NaBIS), was supported by other forces around the country.

Assistant Chief Constable Julie Fielding, of Devon and Cornwall Police, said: ‘As a result of this firearms surrender, all of these items are now permanently out of potential circulation.

‘While not every firearm is owned with the intent of criminal activity, every firearm can become a weapon in the wrong hands. Removing the guns from circulation reduces the risk of danger to public safety.

‘The campaign was an opportunity for anyone to hand in illegal, unregistered or unwanted firearms without risk of arrest at the point of surrender, and while the campaign is now over, I would still encourage anyone in possession of a firearm or ammunition that they no longer want to contact us for safe disposal.’

Th two-week surrender period at the end of last month aimed to reduce the volume of guns in circulation and save lives.

The last national surrender was in 2019 which resulted in hundreds of firearms and rounds of ammunition being handed in taking the weapons out the hands of criminals.

Information about firearms and explosives licensing in Devon and Cornwall can be found at www.devon-cornwall.police.uk/our-services/firearms.