The biggest gun buyback scheme in WA since the Port Arthur massacre has resulted in more than 38,000 firearms being surrendered to police.
The weapons — including 3195 handguns, 9908 shotguns and 25,339 rifles — were handed over in return for cash across a six-month amnesty aimed at stopping them “from falling into the wrong hands”.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Guns blown up as WA government trumpets buyback scheme success.
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More than 20,500 licenced holders took part, with 6000 of them giving away all their weapons.
More than half of the haul has been destroyed, with WA Police sharing the vision of some guns being ground into tiny fragments.
Other firearms were taken to an unknown location and blasted to pieces with explosives. The rest will be disposed of in the coming weeks.
The state government had offered registered gun owners up to $1000 to voluntarily hand in their weapons at any police station before the end of August.
Premier Roger Cook said the response was “overwhelming”, with 50 per cent of the firearms surrendered coming from the metropolitan area.
Police Minister Paul Papalia described the result as the “single biggest reduction in gun numbers anywhere in Australia” since the federal government responded to the Port Arthur massacre with a national buyback scheme.
About $64 million was budgeted for WA’s program and Papalia said about $11 million had been paid out. He estimates that will rise to $15 million once more gun payments are processed over the coming weeks.
Papalia believes that beyond the 38,000 guns surrendered, more would have been removed from WA via lawful means, including interstate and international sales.
“Put simply there are over 38,000 reasons why my police officers are now safer and the community is now safer,” Police Commissioner Col Blanch said.
Vision of the explosion was dismissed as a stunt by the opposition, with WA Nationals leader Shane Love describing it as “ridiculous” and saying the minister is “on some sort of Boy Zone publicity trail”.
WA authorities are now preparing to target gun owners whose firearms will become illegal when the new ownership laws come into force in March.
The laws restrict the number of guns people can own and will strip firearms from serious offenders, including family and domestic violence perpetrators.
Cook said the “buyback has closed but our mission to keep our streets safe continues”.
“Our firearm amnesty remains open. That means any gun owner can hand their weapon into police whether it’s licensed or unlicensed.”
Guns handed over now will not be compensated financially.