Smith opens 'CSI-style' gun crime service
- 00:01:02
- ITN
Smith opens 'CSI-style' gun crime service
A new "CSI-style" national ballistics service has been opened by Home Secretary Jacqui Smith to assist police in solving gun crimes. The state-of-the-art £8 million National Ballistics Intelligence Service (Nabis) is available to all 43 forces across England and Wales and provides analysis of all ballistics, effectively giving guns and bullets a fingerprint which can be tracked. Police across the country will be able to match guns to offenders more quickly and trace the weapon which a bullet has been fired from if criminals use it more than once. Since Nabis began work three months ago it has already linked over 100 incidents in which firearms have been discharged and have received over 700 items for analysis. This includes providing support to the police teams investigating Operation Trident incidents in London and the Fairfield Post Office shooting. A conference room at the centre was dedicated to teenagers Letitia Shakespeare and Charlene Ellis who were killed in a drive-by shooting in Birmingham six years ago. Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said: "Every gun or bullet tells a story. The National Ballistics Intelligence Service helps police unravel that story and track down offenders. Nabis's specialist CSI-style analysis of ballistics - effectively giving guns and bullets a fingerprint which can be tracked - will help police to match guns to offenders in double quick time. "Nabis's expert advice will help police take more guns off our streets and better protect our communities from gun-related crimes". There are also concerns about the use of deactivated firearms in crime. Ms Smith added: "Deactivated firearms that fall into the criminal hands can have terrifying, violent consequences. "We estimate that there are about 180,000 certificated deactivated guns in circulation and a further 8,000 or 9,000 guns are deactivated each year. "I do not wish to interfere with genuine collectors and others with a legitimate and safe use for these items. "That is why I am asking people from a range agencies and organisations who have the expert knowledge to tell us the best way to crack down on this problem."
ITN | March 2, 2009
