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Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2018 2:53 pm
by mag41uk
Some of you may have seen cut and paste replies from a few MP`s.
They are stating that a licensed 50 cal was stolen about a year ago and another licensed 50 cal holder was involved in illegal arms and munitions supply.
Any one got any info on these claims?

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2018 3:12 pm
by kennyc

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2018 4:55 pm
by mag41uk
The replies I have seen refer to the West Midlands.

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2018 7:39 pm
by Pete
Sounds like the "criminal activity" was the actual theft, not the discharging of the 50 cal in the committing of a crime.
There is a difference..................

Pete

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2018 8:25 pm
by artiglio
I ‘ve read somewhere that when recovered the barrel had been shortened, it would be interesting to know by how much and as to whether in its shortened state it would have been able to exceed 13600 joules.

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Wed Jul 11, 2018 9:49 pm
by David TS
The stolen .50 cal was allegedly stolen from an RFD

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2018 10:33 am
by Chuck
So there's now a drive to ban them because ONE got stolen?

That's typical UK political mentality - punish the law abiding owners for the actions of criminals!

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2018 10:35 am
by Christel
No drive, if you ask me it is a done deal.

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2018 11:47 am
by 1066
Reply from my MP this morning:

Thank you for contacting me about the Offensive Weapons Bill.

I can assure you that I am not opposed to the possession of firearms generally, and I certainly recognise that the overwhelming majority of firearms are used responsibly. However I do appreciate that it is important to ensure more work is done to break the cycle of violence that devastates the lives of individuals, families and communities. I know the Government shares this position and is taking action to ensure the sale and possession of dangerous weapons is prevented and as part of this has introduced the ‘Serious Violence Strategy’ to help tackle the recent increases in serious violence.

I have consulted with colleagues around this issue and understand that the Serious Violence Strategy supports a multi-strand approach including robust law enforcement, early intervention and prevention. A key element of the strategy is the Offensive Weapons Bill. The Bill contains a range of measures to update and strengthen the law on the sale of corrosive substances, ban the delivery of knives and corrosives bought online to residential addresses and ban the possession of weapons including zombie knives, knuckle dusters and death stars both in public and private. The Bill will also make it harder for young people to buy knives and acid online.

I can see that you have highlighted key areas of concern that the shooting community have and that one of them references ‘ No legally owned rifle of the types to be prohibited has ever been used in criminal activity’ however I understand from colleagues that on occasion these weapons have fallen into the wrong hands and that a .50 calibre rifle was stolen from the home of a licensed holder of firearms last year and in another case, a licensed owner of weapons including a .50 calibre rifle was involved in the firearms and ammunition supply chain of an organised crime gang in the West Midlands. As I previously mentioned, I do believe that the vast majority of firearms owners are responsible owners, but it is the case that the Government has a duty to safeguard the public and to take the steps that they feel are necessary in order to do this.

You may be aware that the Public Bill Committee is accepting written evidence regarding the Offensive Weapons Bill and that you can present your views to this committee by the 13th September 2018. I would therefore encourage you to submit your views via the following weblink so that your views can be taken into consideration : https://www.parliament.uk/business/news ... pons-bill/ .

Thank you again for contacting me and for sharing your thoughts with me.

(As an aside, please could ask you to kindly email me back with your address so that my office can record our correspondence. Thank you for this. )

Kind regards,

Huw

Huw Merriman

Re: Stolen 50 cal.......

Posted: Thu Jul 12, 2018 12:41 pm
by jmc67
Stupid question perhaps, but do we know whether the '50 caliber rifle' that is being referred to by the MPs is actually a one of the HME 50 cals, and not something like a 50 caliber muzzle loader? I doubt the MPs would be bothered by the difference, but all it would take is a policy maker reading a document saying '50 caliber rifle has been stolen' and bingo, who cares about the details but they have a route to banning something.