By Dominic Abassi/Daryl Major

Nanaimo RCMP take nearly 50 firearms off the street during October amnesty

Nov 10, 2016 | 1:52 PM

NANAIMO — There are a lot less guns on the streets of Nanaimo thanks to October’s province-wide gun amnesty.

Nanaimo RCMP report 44 firearms were turned over to their members. Const. Gary O’Brien says that included handguns, rifles and shotguns.

“Most of the stories were similar,” said O’Brien. “Many people just wanted to get rid of the guns. They weren’t hunting any more or moved from the Prairies where they had rural properties and had no need for the firearms in their house. They were very pleased that the officers would come and they relinquished them without problem.”

O’Brien says while there weren’t any unique weapons handed in, they did have one man that made a surprising discovery in an old piece of furniture left behind in a house he had bought.

“One desk that he checked had a hidden compartment and in it were 13 handguns,” said O’Brien. “He checked with the owner, he is an older gentleman who happened to be a quasi-gun collector. This individual was interested in obtaining them at one time legally. But when finding out they were prohibited, he decided not to proceed and turned them over to the RCMP.”

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Oceanside RCMP report 14 firearms were turned in to them during the amnesty, including a mix of shotguns, long guns and a few pistols.

B.C. RCMP say 1,184 firearms were collected province-wide during October. Police say there were 543 rifles, 223 shotguns and 222 handguns. Throughout the month, there were 690 requests for police to collect firearms, weapons or ammunition from households in B.C., according to a release.

During the last amnesty in 2013, 150 firearms were collected by Nanaimo RCMP. That accounted for nearly 10 per cent of all weapons collected from across the province.