Weapons stolen from Fermanagh gun dealer

A licensed gun dealer in the North was held up at gunpoint and robbed of a number of weapons, it was revealed today.

Three masked men, one carrying a shotgun, held up the dealer in his shop at Main Street in Garrison on the Co Fermanagh border just before closing time on Saturday, police said.

Police are trying to establish whether dissident republicans are arming themselves. A Police Service of Northern Ireland spokesman said: “We are not ruling anything out at the moment.”

He said a number of guns had been stolen in raids across the counties of Fermanagh, Tyrone, Armagh and Down in the past couple of months – but this was the first time a gun dealer had been robbed.

Just last week police issued a warning to gun owners to be alert and to keep their weapons secure.

During the speedy raid the shotgun was pointed at the gun dealer who was forced to hand over a number of handguns.

The PSNI said the haul included two Glock 9mm pistols; a Sig Saur 9mm pistol; a Walther.22 pistol and five Hammerli .22 target pistols.

A quantity of both 9mm and .22 ammunition was also taken.

The gang is believed to have made off in a dark blue Nissan Primera car which was found ablaze at Fassagh Bridge in Belleek less than 30 minutes later.

Detectives appealed to anyone who saw such a car in Garrison before the robbery or noticed it being driven away or abandoned to contact them.