Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, has revealed that more than 1,000 dangerous weapons have been taken off the streets of the West Midlands in the last three months after being placed into his weapon surrender bins.
The 30 bins across the West Midlands were recently emptied by specialist teams, with weapons including ninja swords, zombie knives and kitchen knives deposited into the blue bins.
They are there for the public to safely dispose of knives, machetes, swords, firearms and other dangerous weapons, with the contents inside collected and later destroyed.
The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster said: “Preventing and tackling knife crime is a top priority for me. That is why I invest in a network of 30 weapons surrender bins across the West Midlands.
“Over a recent 3 months period 1,036 weapons, including knives, guns and machetes were deposited into these bins. That means fewer dangerous weapons out on the streets of the West Midlands.
“There have been recent welcome reductions in knife crime. However, I am not in the least complacent about that. One victim of knife crime is one too many.
“That is why, I am doubling the number of weapon surrender bins across the West Midlands – so that we can remove more dangerous weapons from the streets – and continue to prevent and tackle knife crime, keep people safe and save lives.”
The bins are funded and owned by the Police and Crime Commissioner and managed by the region’s Violence Reduction Partnership, based in the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner.
You can find the location of the bins and more information here.
https://www.westmidlands-pcc.gov.uk/preventing-crime/knife-crime/weapon-surrender-bins/
