Police seize machine guns, rifles and revolvers in crackdown on firearms traffickers
Investigations have shown the suspects were trading handguns, assault rifles and even grenade launchers
Some of the rifles that were seized
Magazines were part of the haul
Rows of handguns that were seized
Police have seized dozens of machine guns, rifles, revolvers and other weapons in a crackdown on firearms traffickers in Europe.
Belgian law enforcement agencies as well as those in Austria took part in the Europol hit on criminal networks engaged in firearms and drugs trafficking
A total of 74 handguns and automatic rifles were seized, while 11 firearms traffickers were arrested.
Officers also dismantled a synthetic drugs lab in several 'action days' conducted in May.
Rows of handguns that were seized
News in 90 June 4th
More than 30 locations in Belgium and Austria were searched during the operation which targeted a criminal network engaged in international firearms trafficking.
Investigations have shown the suspects were trading handguns, assault rifles and even grenade launchers.
On one day alone, 50 handguns of a specific make were discovered, as well as 13 other handguns, four machine guns, four rifles, one revolver, two alarm pistols, and four large-capacity magazines for automatic weapons.
Magazines were part of the haul
Another 16 magazines and two 'homemade clubs' were seized while in one location, law enforcement officers found a drug laboratory and over 450 kilos of a novel synthetic drug.
The site had also been used as a storage facility for illegal cigarettes.
The criminal network involved in trafficking firearms had been under covert investigation for months, as investigators gained an insight into the organisers, their helpers and various buyers.
Based in Belgium, it is suspected that the gang had contacts with weapon traffickers based all over Europe, including Austria.
The Austrian suspects, of which two were arrested in Belgium, are believed to have supplied a large number of weapons to the criminal network. They were already known to law enforcement for obtaining large amounts of weapon parts in Austria and illegally exporting them.
'Certain weapon parts can be obtained without a license in Austria,' Europol said in a statement.
Some of the rifles that were seized
'This legal situation is often misused by criminals to assemble weapons with parts obtained from various sources.
'After the arrest of the two individuals residing in Austria and the seizure of 50 handguns by the Belgian police, the Austrian Directorate State Protection and Intelligence Service was able to determine that the grips of these weapons were purchased in Austria.
'Subsequently, house searches were carried out at the residences of those arrested, as a result of which several data storage devices were seized.'
Europol said they supported the national investigations with operational analysis and coordinated the international cooperation.
On the action day conducted in Belgium, a Europol expert was deployed with a mobile office to provide cross-checks of new evidence against Europol's databases.
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