BKA has registered more violations of the Arms Act and the War Weapons Control Act by 2023
The Federal Criminal Office (BKA) has registered more violations of the Weapons Act and the War Weapons Control Act in 2023 compared to the previous year. The number of cases in Germany under the Weapons Act increased by 6.3 percent to around 35,800, as shown in a current federal crime report. Additionally, there were 563 violations of the War Weapons Control Act (an increase of 4.3 percent). According to the report, the majority of these cases likely involve illegal acquisition, possession, carrying, and importation of weapons.
In 2023, the number of criminal offenses involving firearms increased by 6.7 percent compared to the previous year, to around 9,100. "The number of cases involving threats with a firearm increased by 8 percent, and the number of cases involving the use of a firearm increased by 5.5 percent," the report states. However, the proportion of criminal offenses involving firearms out of all recorded cases remains very low at 0.15 percent.
According to the BKA's assessment, the professional, illegal conversion of blank-firing weapons, particularly of Turkish origin, as well as the illegal manufacture of firearms, continue to be a focus of investigations. For instance, in June 2023, the State Criminal Police Office of Schleswig-Holstein seized 40 converted blank-firing pistols from a truck from Turkey.
The BKA's focus on investigating the illegal conversion and manufacture of firearms, particularly blank-firing weapons of Turkish origin, is consistent with their findings in 2023. Following this, the State Criminal Police Office of Schleswig-Holstein successfully seized 40 converted blank-firing pistols from a Turkish truck in June 2023.
