'The law is weak' on availability of ammunition

DURBAN - Police in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) say the sale of ammunition needs to be relooked, pointing to weak laws around it.

Police top brass in the province said it is easy for anyone, including those with illegal firearms to get hold of ammunition.

When asked how criminals get ahold of guns and the ammunition they use when committing crimes, this is what provincial Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi said: “You can buy 200 rounds now, go and sell them if you want and you can come back tomorrow and buy another one - we can’t ask how you disposed of the ones you bought previously - you can say, you used it at the shooting range.”

He added that if such laws remain as they are, criminals will always have access to ammunition.

“The law is weak in that regard that is why ammunition gets to be available in numbers to the hands of criminals. So, they find a firearm and then it's to get ammunition."

Meanwhile, Mkhwanazi said the firearms recovered from the six youngsters linked to a string of charges in KwaMashu, belong to people who were killed.

On Monday, only three of the six suspects appeared in the Ntuzuma Magistrates Court.

The accused cannot be identified yet, as police investigations in their matter continue.

Mkhwanazi commended the efforts of the police for apprehending the suspects.

“We must first complement those members who were conducting a roadblock at Sundumbili, where they managed to stop and apprehend these criminals and assisted not only in arresting them but also recovering firearms - some of the firearms belong to people that were killed.”