Youth gangs hiding weapons, AK-47 for organised criminals
YOUNG thugs are getting their hands on high-powered guns, including military assault rifles, through an unusual practice. And the disturbing trend is worsening after a prohibition order introduced by the government just months ago.
Law & Order
Don't miss out on the headlines from Law & Order. Followed categories will be added to My News.
EXCLUSIVE: YOUNG thugs are being lent high-powered guns, including military assault rifles, by organised crime figures.
The Herald Sun has been told that serious criminals are increasingly using young minions as “gun-sitters” because they do not want to be caught with the lethal weapons themselves.
Organised criminals are also arming the younger offenders so they can use the guns to carry out crimes on the gangs’ behalf.
MILITARY RIFLE SEIZED IN MELBOURNE RAIDS
SCARY REALITY OF AK-47S IN AUSTRALIA
The practice has become more frequent since May, when the government introduced Firearms Prohibition Orders.
Police have the power to raid a person who is the subject of such an order without a warrant. If firearms or gun parts or ammunition are found, penalties can extend to up to 10 years’ imprisonment.
Detectives are now investigating the origin and background of two semi-automatic rifles uncovered in separate police raids in Melbourne in the past week.
One, found with an 18-year-old at Oakleigh on Tuesday, was described by police as an AK-47.
Another, which one gun dealer said was a “Chinese knock-off” of an AK-47, was found last Friday in an eastern suburbs raid on a 26-year-old man connected to a gang of teenage carjacking suspects.
The AK-47, used by defence forces around the world, can fire up to 600 rounds a minute.
Ballistics checks will determine whether the gun has been used in other crimes, such as drive-by shootings.
But the discovery of two military-grade weapons in a week has raised questions about how many such weapons are in circulation.
The gun dealer said thousands of replica AK-47s were legally imported in the 1980s: “Everyone had one. You could buy one back then for $200.”
It is estimated that such a weapon would now fetch $10,000 on the black market, though ammunition has become difficult to obtain.
The dealer said the model seized by police was in good condition and could have been up to 40 years old.
Police were stunned such firepower was in the hands of comparatively junior crooks.
“Where do they stop, these idiots? They just seem to have no fear,” one experienced investigator said.
Illegal semiautomatic guns have been found in the wrong hands a number of times in recent years. One, used during a bikie conflict several years ago, was later found at the home of a career criminal.
Victoria Police thwarted a major importation of assault rifles three years ago, but not before a number were found in the hands of drug dealers and armed robbers.
In 2016, a machinegun was seized during a series of raids on the Mongols bikie gang.
Links between Middle-Eastern organised crime figures and teens have long existed.
Police have often established instances of the senior criminals commissioning teens to steal luxury vehicles in carjackings and aggravated burglaries, paying them a small cut of the illicit sale proceeds.
Premier Daniel Andrews said on Tuesday he could not comment the weapons find, but the high-profile arrests showed police were getting on top of the youth crime issue.
“I would leave it to Victoria Police to comment on what has and hasn’t been found and the context and trends, any important observations they might want to make on that, I wouldn’t want to cut across an active investigation,” Mr Andrews said.
Mr Andrews said the stronger powers and extra resources his government provided helped the force to begin to turn the tide on youth crime.
“As you can see by the arrests that have been very heavily publicised in recent days that police are doing exactly what they said they would do, turning this around with extra resources provided by our government.”
MORE HERALD SUN NEWS: