New call to hand in side or top venting blank firers during national amnesty

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary is supporting a national firearms amnesty for five models of Italian-made Top Venting Blank Firers (TVBFs) this month.

The campaign starts today (Monday 2 February) and ends on Friday 27 February, after which anyone in possession of the specified models could be subject to prosecution and up to ten years’ imprisonment.

Generally, side or top venting blank firers, which have a fully blocked barrel and are designed to discharge only blank cartridges, are legal to buy in the UK without a licence.

However, recent national testing has found that five models of TVBFs, made by the Italian company Bruni, are readily convertible to viable firearms and are therefore illegal under the Firearms Act.

The models are:

Nationally, more than 70 Bruni manufactured devices have been recovered following use in a variety of criminal offences, and law enforcement data shows that at least five homicides have occurred using a converted TVBF since 2023.

During this year’s amnesty period, owners of these models of TVBFs in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight can hand them in at any one of four police stations, without facing prosecution.

They can remain anonymous, however, the history of any live firearms handed in will be checked for evidence of its use in crime.

The amnesty will be held for four weeks. Other unwanted, unlicensed firearms and ammunition may be surrendered to police at any time, which will avoid the risk of them becoming involved in criminality and means that members of the community can dispose of firearms in a safe place.

Chief Inspector Hayley O’Grady, operation lead for Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary, said: “We have low levels of gun crime in our force area and we want to keep it that way.

“Our support for this national campaign will mean that owners of these now-illegal models of blank firers can hand them in safely and stop them from getting into the wrong hands.

“If you own one of these models, I’d urge you to hand them in. If you don’t, you will run the risk of prosecution and a lengthy prison sentence.”

The addresses of police locations where these firearms can be handed are:

Assistant Chief Constable Tim Metcalfe, National Police Chiefs’ Council Lead for the Criminal Use of Firearms, said: “Side or top-venting blank firers are very appealing to criminals and offenders who convert them, as they can generate large profits. 

“As well as urging people to surrender their Bruni TVBF if it is one of the five models which have now been identified as readily convertible, we are continuing to target those involved in the criminal use of firearms. 

“We work closely with the National Crime Agency (NCA) to identify and disrupt workshops used to covert pistols into lethal weapons, recover weapons and ammunition, and bring offenders to justice. 

“There continues to be a strong demand for such weapons, evidenced by the numbers imported and subsequent recovery from criminals, and we will be relentless in our pursuit of those posing such a risk to our communities. 

“Stopping the sale of these side or top-venting blank firers from being converted will also go a significant way to help protect the public.”

To receive advice on how best to transport the weapon responsibly from home to the police station phone 101 before travelling.

If you know of people involved in illegal firearms activity, please call us on 101, or submit information via our website - https://www.hampshire.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/soh/seen-or-heard/

You can also report information anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Every call to Crimestoppers is anonymous and potentially vital to preventing or solving serious crimes; removing an illegally held firearm may just save someone’s life.