SA Police declare gel blasters a firearm, as push for regulation gathers pace
Gel blaster retailers have been shaken by the classification of their product as a firearm – and they’re frustrated police won’t share the details of their testing.
Police & Courts
Don't miss out on the headlines from Police & Courts. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Last month: Man arrested after pedestrians blasted
- Last year: Gel ball blasters mistaken for real guns
SA Police have categorised gel blasters as firearms – a move that has rocked retailers who say it will lead to job losses.
Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said the weapons, which shoot water gel bullets, now meet the “definition of a firearm” after conducting a ballistics assessment.
“We’ve been looking at gel blasters for some time and continually updating our ballistic assessment as the product changes and becomes more sophisticated,” he said.
SA Police suspended the global import of the guns after they have been used in recent violent incidents.
The details of the ballistics test have not been released, with a police spokeswoman saying: “SAPOL cannot add much more than what the Commissioner has said (on Monday morning)”.
“The ballistic examination has been undertaken by a specialist ballistician who makes a determination if the gel blasters meet the definition of a firearm under the SA Firearms Act.”
Tactical Edge Hobbies store manager Simon Lloyd said the industry was frustrated with police for not revealing the details of the test.
“No one can tell us what the test results are and what they tested in particular,” he said.
“Our major issue with that is, the engineering behind them is the same as Nerf guns. So are you going to ban all ... Nerf guns too?”
Mr Lloyd said there are about 10 retailers in SA, plus a number of parks that rely on gel blaster skirmishes enjoyed by young families.
He said the new regulation banning the guns was a massive blow.
“By putting us down as a firearm, that’s going to kill it. See you later, all those jobs: gone,” he said.
From Sunday:
Gel blaster guns have been declared a firearm by police after a review that has prompted an import freeze to stop the toys from entering South Australia.
SA Police has told the State Government gel blasters, which have been used in recent crimes in a worrying trend, now meet the “definition of a firearm”.
Police Minister Corey Wingard confirmed the review in a letter on June 11, explaining updated advice had come from police after “ballistic examinations” of the imitation weapons.
In the letter to Labor MP Lee Odenwalder, Mr Wingard says the assessment of “gel blasters as a firearm” supports the need for regulation.
“After conducting ballistic examinations, SAPOL’s most recent advice is that gel blasters meet the definition of a firearm as defined by Section 4 of the Firearms Act 2015 as the mechanism compresses air to fire a projectile,” the letter says.
“SAPOL has, therefore, temporarily suspended the processing of B709 import forms”.
That suspension means local gel blaster retailers can no longer import the guns despite them still being legal to buy, sell and own in SA.
Mr Wingard told The Advertiser he was working on the “best and fairest way to achieve a regulatory position” to please all parties.
He said he was waiting for SA Police to recommend changes to regulation after their recent review.
Police declined to comment but have previously issued warnings about the toys and hold concerns.
Gel blasters are used in skirmish games similar to paintball and are only legal in SA and Queensland.
The toys have been a controversial issue after multiple incidents in which people have been shot with tiny gel balls that are soaked in water.
In May, a man was arrested after three pedestrians were struck by pellets in the northern suburbs, leaving one victim with an eye injury.
That incident prompted a warning from Police Commissioner Grant Stevens, who said regulation was needed because gel blasters are easily mistaken for real weapons like a “powerful automatic rifle”. Tactical Edge Hobbies store manager Simon Lloyd said it was wrong to blame the toys because they had irresponsible owners.
“People who are doing silly things need to be punished,” he said.
“We fully back the police so we can continue doing what we love to do which is play our sport.
“But if someone holds up a store with a machete, hammer or a syringe, the object goes into evidence. (Police) are not then going to companies that sell those items and saying ‘You have to ban these’.”
Mr Lloyd said retailers already impose strict rules to sell the toys safely, which included age restrictions and comprehensive briefings on how to use them safely.
Mr Lloyd said a hobby licence – which would register owners on a state database – was the smartest way to regulate gel blasters.
“We’re trying to convince (Mr Stevens) to go down that path rather than put them under a paintball licence. If they do that, everyone needs a real firearms licence which will kill the sport,” he said.
Mr Odenwalder, Labor’s police spokesman, said: “We need to make sure that these weapons are properly regulated, and that legitimate businesses owners only allow the use of gel blasters in a strictly controlled environment.”