More than 150 guns taken off streets in Birmingham and West Midlands

Police have taken more than 150 guns off the streets of Birmingham and the West Midlands.

Officers say this has also led to shootings falling across the region and dozens of serious and organised criminals being put behind bars.

Last year, officers recovered 152 guns across the West Midlands. That was an increase from 121 the previous year. In addition, there were 92 firearms discharges last year, compared to 126 the previous year and 161 the year before that.

West Midlands Police has released the data around the first anniversary of the force’s Major Crime Unit being set up with a pledge to “keep up the pressure on gangs who cause misery to communities”.

Split into proactive and reactive teams, the Major Crime Unit was brought into force as part of a major reorganisation of West Midlands Police last year, the force explained. Proactive teams gather and develop intelligence to arrest those involved and serious crime and build cases which see them put behind bars for years.

Reactive teams are ready to act whenever there’s a major incident requiring specialist staff and detectives to work through vast quantities of CCTV, mobile phone data and forensic evidence. One of the six Reactive teams alone has charged more than 50 people in the last year, including 21 for attempted murder. The force says its major successes include:

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Dangerous criminals they’ve brought to justice include:

A spokesperson for WMP explained: “Our Major Crime Proactive Team also runs manhunts, which are launched when a dangerous suspect needs arresting urgently. It sees officers form a 24/7 specialist unit, using a range of overt and covert tactics to bring the suspect in as quickly and safely as possible.

“In the last year, they’ve carried out 71 manhunts. All of the suspects were found, and 44 of them were wanted for murder. Their work has already seen the arrest of 73 predatory sexual offenders, caught as a result of undercover work online by officers.

“And more than £900,000 has been recovered through the courts, and through seizures. Half of that money will be returned to West Midlands Police to invest in making communities safer.”

‘Really successful year in targeting serious and organised crime in the West Midlands’

Det Supt Scott Griffiths, who oversees the teams, said: “We’ve had a really successful year of targeting serious and organised crime in the West Midlands. 

“We’ve uncovered criminal gangs through our proactive work to seek out those who use violence and intimidation, and when we’ve had major incidents that have resulted in people being seriously injured n the streets of the West Midlands, we’ve acted swiftly and decisively to investigate and put those responsible behind bars for years to come.

“The new way of working which came into place at the start of last year means we’ve got dedicated resources to quickly review CCTV, mobile phone and forensic evidence.

“But we’re also working really closely with local policing areas to understand the community impact and gather information and intelligence.”

If you’ve got information on those involved in serious and organised crime in the West Midlands, get in touch via 101, or via Live Chat on the West Midlands Police website. You can also get in touch with Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.