Police figures reveal 1,300 legally owned guns in the borough
MORE than 1,000 people legally own guns in Croydon, new police figures reveal.
Almost 250 people are allowed to keep a firearm at home and a further 1,053 are legally allowed to keep shotguns in the borough.
Police figures rank Croydon sixth in the number of licenses issued last year in London.
Although gun clubs point out people who apply for licenses undergo a strict vetting process, critics have claimed it is too easy to get hold of a firearm.
On January 1, three people were shot in Waddon New Road, Croydon, after an armed gang stormed a New Year's Eve party.
All three survived but it is a chilling echo of New Year's Eve 2009, when 34-year-old Darren Deslandes was shot dead in his father's pub, The Newton Arms, in Thornton Heath.
His 26-year-old brother Junior was also shot and critically injured.
His killer Saturday Hassan, 30, was later jailed for 37 years but police have never found the handgun used to kill Darren.
Croydon residents have criticised the number of shotgun licenses issued in the borough. Christian Cooper, 27, from Selsdon, said: "I don't agree with gun laws as they are.
"Croydon is dangerous enough as it is without people being able to get their hands on a gun so easily. The law has to be a lot stricter."
Pensioner Frank Hague, 72, believes the vetting laws are too lax.
He told the Advertiser: "It should be a lot harder to get hold of a shotgun."
Joan Crew, 56, from South Croydon, added: "It's wrong, it needs to be made harder to get hold of them, especially in areas like Croydon.
"Why would you need a shotgun in Croydon? In the countryside, yes, I can understand farmers feeling the need to own one, but not here. There is absolutely no need for it."
A spokesman for the British Association for Shooting and Conservation said that UK gun law is among the strictest in the world and added that holders of firearm and shotgun certificates have to be among the most law-abiding people in the country.
Do you have a view on this story? Email lucy.buckland@essnmedia.co.uk or join the debate at www.thisiscroydontoday.co.uk
9 Comments
by Malcolm Pemberton, East Croydon
Sunday, January 30 2011, 9:20AM
“I cannot work out if the Advertiser is ignorant of the facts or chooses to ignore them, in favour of a good scare story.
The article above, now shows a handgun, as the weapon to scare the Croydon resident.
And so it should - I suspect that there are hundreds in the borough.
However, I can categorically state that NONE of the legally held guns, in the Croydon Borough, will be handguns. So why have they now chosen to illustrate this type of weapon, directly under their heading of:
Police figures reveal 1,300 legally owned guns in the borough?
Handguns were ALL bought back from their legal owners, by the Government, at considerable expense, more than ten years ago.
So again, can I repeat that NO HANDGUNS IN CROYDON HOMES ARE LEGAL!!
Therefore, to state the obvious, the only HANDGUNS in Croydon homes, are in the hands of criminals.
By the way, in answer to a previous comment, Target rifles, like golf clubs, can be used at various locations. Therefore it is often not convenient to restrict their use to one location.”
by Cuck Heston, Worshipping the Second Amendment
Friday, January 21 2011, 12:18PM
“The article WAS thrown together but then this is the Croydon Advertiser. Nuff said.
In considering who might need to keep a firearm at home, I wonder who needs a gun. I can think of farmers, shooting club members, owners of antiques, dealers and some police (etc) officers.
Farmers (Croydon has a few), I can understand. Gun club members only shoot on club premises, so needn't keep guns at home. There may also be a few antiques that must be registered. Gun dealers should not routinely hold weapons (oo er missus) at home but may have to on rare occasion. Police (etc) should keep guns in the safe in their vehicle. Anyone else keeping a gun at home, even in a safe, is asking for trouble.
Maybe I've missed something but apart from these exceptions, I can't think why anyone would need a firearm at home. Oh. The excuse "It's for my protection" is arrant nonsense, of course, as violence begets violence.”
by Sam, Ex-resident of South London
Friday, January 21 2011, 7:06AM
“Dear Lucy,
With reference to your article, as is often the case meaningless one-lined responses from those opposed to legalised shooting have been received and more detailed, balanced ones from other people. You quote from the British Association for Shooting and Conservation... I suggest you study their website carefully before writing such biased, misleading and alarmist articles in the future.
For your information, there has just been an inquiry into firearms control conducted by the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee. This, along with the BASC website, should serve as an appropriate reply to your article.
I am unsure as to why a handgun was used to illustrate your article referring to ¿legally owned¿ guns. Handguns have been banned in the United Kingdom since 1997 (although that doesn't really affect those who live outside of the law, now does it!).
Regards.”
by The One, Reedham trawlers
Thursday, January 20 2011, 7:17PM
“Guns are bad news but a lot of people in US carry guns.Imagine road rage and a gun is being carried very worrying .”
by Anon, Croydon
Thursday, January 20 2011, 2:24PM
“If you want to use guns for fun, then they should only be used on certain premises and not kept at home.”
by RobinHood, Thieves Wood,Sherwood
Thursday, January 20 2011, 1:31PM
“Patricia,
What a short sighted ignorant view.
People kill. I should imagine that more people are killed in UK by knives,blunt instruments and strangulation.
Are you proposing that all knives and bricks etc are made of soft rubber and that people should have their hands cut off at birth to prevent them strangling people?
How many people have the British Olympic shooting team killed?
I will concede that paper targets and clay pigeons have a rough time of it but in general most legal gun owners are very responsible.”
by PATRICIA, SOUTH CROYDON
Thursday, January 20 2011, 12:35PM
“I meant gun, not fun.”
by PATRICIA, SOUTH CROYDON
Thursday, January 20 2011, 12:34PM
“Nobody should be allowed to own a fun. Fullstop. Guns are for killing and none of us should be allowed to kill.”
by Malcolm Pemberton, Croydon
Friday, January 14 2011, 2:03PM
“Dear Lucy,
I know that it is bad form to ruin a good scare story by asking for facts but....
You say that there are 1,300 legally owned guns in the borough. Of which 250 people keep ¿weapons¿ at home and 1,053 can keep shotguns.
So those 250 ¿weapons¿ must be rifles, as handguns were banned over 10 years ago. You then raise the shooting in Thornton Heath in 2008 where the handgun was not found. Therefore this handgun was never, ever legally held in the first place. I must wonder why it was therefore included in the article?
The article then goes on to scare the general public with all of these shotguns and ¿weapons¿ being held available at home. Giving an inference, that these put the public in danger. But the article does not explain how many of these legally held guns have been used illegally.
So to complete the story, you really need to state what number or percentage of these 1,303 guns, that have been used in crime, since the handgun shooting in 2008?
If you have researched this thoroughly, I would assume that this number is available to you and is probably zero or close to it.
If I am correct, the inclusion of this number, would rather shoot the whole article down, into a non-story.
But perhaps you can elaborate and prove me wrong!
Malcolm Pemberton. (Not a holder of a legal or illegal gun.)
East Croydon.”