Following growing reports about firearms being smuggled into the Western Cape from beyond our borders, the City’s enforcement agencies have confiscated nine firearms over the past three months, with serial numbers that do not appear anywhere on the South African Police Service (SAPS) Central Firearms Control Registry.
“Under South Africa’s Firearms Control Act, no firearm may legally be imported into the country without an approved import permit issued by the Registrar of Firearms through SAPS,” said Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security JP Smith.
“This applies to dealers, private individuals, sport shooters, and foreign visitors alike. Such permits are issued through the Central Firearms Control Registry or its delegated officials and are a prerequisite for a firearm to lawfully pass through a port of entry,” he added.
According to Smith, firearms outside the regulatory framework did not enter the country legally, consistent with conclusions in the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime’s 6th Gang Monitor report, which outlines the trafficking of firearms from Namibia into the Western Cape.
Photo: JP Smith/Facebook [illustrative]
