Amnesty sees 1,300 of gangs' gun of choice off the streets

More than 1,300 pistols which have become the weapon of choice among gangsters in London are now in the hands of police after a nationwide amnesty.

Olympic .38 BBM guns were declared illegal after criminals began converting them to fire live ammunition.

The guns, easily available online for as little as £30, were normally used to start track races but, by the end of March, 179 of the converted weapons had been used in crimes such as grievous bodily harm and attempted murder — all but 22 of them in London.

Police revealed today they had recovered 1,322 guns in the seven-week amnesty, launched in April, which assistant chief constable Susannah Fish called a "hugely successful operation". The public handed in 799, with the rest seized in raids against internet importers.

In March a 17-year-old from Islington was jailed for 10 years for two attempted murders using an Olympic gun.