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POLICE are warning rural residents to be vigilant when it comes to the storage of guns and ammunition as instances of thefts rise. A weekend report indicated organised criminals and bikies are using associates to steal from country gun owners in order to bolster weapon caches, however according to one of Dubbo's top cops the issue isn't as prevalent in the Orana region as it is in other areas of the state. Twelve premises in the region have been the subject of firearm thefts so far in 2016, but Detective Sergeant Mark Meredith believes the local command are doing their job when it comes to the recovery of stolen items. "About half of the overall figure are rural crime related, but from the 12 premises there is about nine incidents where we have recovered firearms as a result of intelligence we receive," Detective Sergeant Meredith said. "The number is probably up on where I have seen it in the past, so there is a pattern developing there to some extent, but we're pretty proud of the fact these incidents are being reported and in the majority of cases we are retrieving the firearms. "We're seeing cases of firearms being stolen, in some cases serious artillery like pistols and revolvers, but we aren't seeing those firearms being used in serious crimes, armed robberies or that kind of thing, so to that extent being able to get the weapons out of the hands of those people is working. "Just like we've said with other crimes, like steal from motor vehicles for example, if the people that own these weapons are securing them in safes or gun cabinets and keeping them out of the eye of these predatory offenders it goes a long way towards stopping it. "It's the same as not having something lying around your car that people can see and try to steal. It gives these offenders less of a chance to be opportunistic in that regard." While most of the stolen firearms from the Orana region are being recovered, Det Sgt Meredith admitted concern at the statewide trend of similar crimes ending with the weapons in the hands of organised criminals. He added one of the biggest problems currently confronting the rural crime department came in the form of hunters trespassing on properties. "There have been a lot of complaints of shooters illegally being on properties and the farmers who own the land having no idea they are there," he said. "That is a big concern and something we'll be working closely on but also the intelligence about where some of these stolen weapons from other commands are ending up is a worry. Some of these guns can bring big money and it's not just the weapons themselves but scopes, ammunition and the like. "Locally we've seen a trend of the weapons being used in drug trafficking where the drug offenders are arming themselves, and by doing so they are endangering a lot of people. "That is where we need the community to keep feeding us information so we can try and get these weapons out of the hands of people before something goes seriously wrong."

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