A loophole in the former arms law in Belgium resulted in stocks of weapons piling up in police stations because law enforcement agencies were not were not allowed to destroy them, but a new reform of the law will change this.
From now on, weapons voluntarily brought into the police commissariat will finally be allowed to be destroyed.
Firearms are often seized during house searches and in other judicial contexts. A prosecutor then decides whether the weapons confiscated by the police are returned or destroyed. In the latter case, this is done through the official test bank, while the cost of this destruction is part of the legal costs of the case in question.
Until now, this judicial context was the only procedure provided in the legislation to have weapons destroyed. There was no legal regulation for the rather large amount of weapons voluntarily handed over to police, such as a firearm obtained via inheritance or which they found in the attic of the house they just bought.
However, a bill and draft royal decree by Justice Minister Van Quickenborne, offer a solution to this impasse. Weapons voluntarily brought into the police commissariat will finally be allowed to be destroyed. Prior to this decision, police will also check that the firearms are not linked to criminal files.
"People who voluntarily hand in their weapon to the police are fulfilling their civic duty. In practice, there was a lot of confusion on the ground about how best to deal with this," said Van Quickenborne. "In some police stations, weapons were even left lying around because no procedure was provided. We are now solving that."
Such destruction must be irrevocable so that the weapon, or parts of it, can never be used again, and it must be confirmed by the police.
Digitalising sector
Van Quickenborne introduced several other changes to the law. From now on, arms dealers and brokers will be obliged to keep a digital register.
The registers, which until now had to be kept on paper, will contain information on each traded weapon and the weapons the dealer has in storage. The local police must be contacted before the digital register is put into use.
"By digitising this sector more, we reduce the risk of fraud or weapons suddenly reentering the criminal environment," he noted. Finally, the rules around gun fairs will be tightened with a clear framework to organise a firearms fair and apply for permission to do so.
