Nottinghamshire cops seizing more illegal weapons from inside people's homes

Throwing stars, zombie knives and knuckledusters are among the items now banned from being kept privately or sold in the UK.

Collectors of these types of weapons – all of which are illegal to carry in public – could now face a prison sentence if they’re caught harbouring them in their homes.

Nottinghamshire Police’s two dedicated knife crime teams, covering the city and county, have seized 22 of these items from a private place since the Offensive Weapons Act came into force on July 14, 2021.

Friction lock batons, disguised knives, push daggers, knuckledusters and curved swords have all been seized by officers since then, with many owners claiming to have had no idea about the change to the law.

But with it now being more than a year since the legislation came into effect, officers have reminded owners of these weapons that claiming ignorance is no excuse.

Sergeant Matt Daley, of Nottinghamshire Police’s city knife crime team, said: “It’s safe to say people are aware you can’t carry these weapons outside though, so people should now start to realise you can’t keep them in your home either.

“It has become more and more advertised this is now an offence, so there is no excuse for people claiming ignorance and this won’t be a defence in court.”

Nottinghamshire Police is one of a handful of forces to have dedicated knife crime teams, with the city and county teams being set up at the end of 2016 and start of 2021 respectively.

Sgt Daley continued: “A lot of the knives we discover and take off the streets aren’t zombie knives or samurai swords but are instead mostly kitchen or craft knives because they are so readily available to people.

“We’ve never gone into a house looking specifically for an offensive weapon but will have instead stumbled across it, for want of a better phrase, after attending an address when someone has been arrested for something else like possession with intent to supply drugs.

“This type of offending can often paint a picture, in that drug dealers might be more likely to have these weapons inside their homes to protect their commodity, compared to someone else.

“Tackling knife crime is a year-round task for us – we don’t just focus on this for two weeks a year as part of Operation Sceptre.

“If you decide to walk out the house carrying a blade or have a prohibited weapon in your home, you’re just spinning the roulette wheel really.”

Superintendent Kathryn Craner, the force’s knife crime lead, added: “Tackling knife crime is and always will be a key priority for us as a force.

“Anyone who has these items needs to hand them into the police straight away, either by calling 101 or leaving them in an amnesty bin at a police station during the next Operation Sceptre week of action from November 14 to 20.

“Doing this won’t lead to anyone getting in trouble – on the contrary, it will help stop this from happening.

“Every knife handed in to us is one less dangerous weapon that can be used to cause serious harm or injury – or potentially result in someone’s life being lost.”