More than 700 firearms recovered in UK in joint operation with Spanish police

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “Each of these 700 firearms had the potential to fall into the wrong hands and be used by criminals to further their offending or, at worst, take a life.” The guns, which are attractive to criminals because they are cheap, have been recovered as both converted and unconverted weapons by UK police forces, Border Force and the NCA. “We have used our reach, influence and relationships overseas, where many serious and organised crime threats come from, to stem the flow of these popular, easily convertible guns and then we and policing have pursued the people who bought them online.” The scheme – codenamed Project Vizardlike – involved working with international organisations to stop the weapons being shipped to the UK, seizing weapons at the border and identifying those who had already bought them. The NCA’s National Firearms Targeting Centre led a coordinated response to identify suspects before providing cases to UK police forces, or the agency’s own investigators. Assistant Chief Constable Tim Metcalfe, NPCC lead for the criminal use of firearms, said: “The scale of the recoveries and arrests shows the threat is real but crucially that, through the determination and hard work of those involved, we won’t shy away from protecting communities from the threat of illegal firearms wherever it may arise from.” General Valentin Diaz, head of the intelligence headquarters of the Spanish Guardia Civil said: “Firearms trafficking is a problem that affects the security of all European countries, which is why international co-operation is essential to fight effectively this threat.