TOY GUNS IN CROSS HAIRS
Cops step up surveillance to crack down on presence of imitation weapons in schools
Published:Monday | February 17, 2025 | 9:31 AMAndre Williams/Staff Reporter
There are renewed concerns about Jamaican students bringing toy guns – some resembling real firearms – into schools, prompting heightened vigilance from the police, who are actively seizing them.
Reports indicate that these toys are being sold by some vendors, and there are concerns that students – even as young as the primary-school level – are also bringing them from home.
On Wednesday, the police seized four toy guns at a St Andrew-based school, where at least 12 students were cautioned.
Superintendent Damian Manderson, head of the St Andrew South Police Division, confirmed the seizure to The Gleaner.
“This is not new in the sense that we have been seeing these toy guns turning up in our schools right across the Corporate Area, and, of course, in St Andrew South, we have seized quite a few in recent months, so it’s not strange,” he said.
He noted that the police are working with schools and other stakeholders to limit the distribution of the toys.
To address the issue, the police have organised sessions with schools, including the school at which Wednesday’s find was made, to involve parents in the conversation.
“We have seen that there are some vendors that are selling them to the kids. Our intelligence is pointing us to that,” Manderson added.
The police took the opportunity on Wednesday to counsel the students on the topic of bullying, aiming to address broader issues of safety and well-being.
At the secondary school level, a video circulated showing high school students being intercepted by the police and searched. One of the students had a toy gun in their bag, and the police threatened to inform the school principal.
A parent, who asked The Gleaner to withhold her identity, expressed concern about the availability of these toy guns in Jamaica, where about 80 per cent of murders are committed with illegal firearms. She was particularly concerned about the involvement of vendors in their distribution.
“I saw it at my child’s school. We can’t make money [by destroying] young lives. The country we live in and where crime is rampant, there is no place for these imitation firearms or toy guns to be in the hands of schoolers. What are they practising? School is for learning and clean fun. Not training these students to fire or profile with guns,” the parent said, calling on the ministry to ban the toys.
The Ministry of Education’s Security and Safety Policy Guidelines (2015) says the ministry “is taking a zero-tolerance approach to the possession of firearms.
“It is the general rule that whatever laws apply to the society at large also apply to the school community. Therefore, students are strictly prohibited in all circumstances from possessing firearms and ammunition on school property. The law, however, ... authorises certain capable adults to possess firearms and ammunition, provided that certain criteria are met,” the document says.
Toy guns are among a list of restricted and banned goods that require special authorisation from the minister of national security in keeping with the Customs Act and other legislation for importation into the country.
“Individuals who wish to legally import and clear these items in Jamaica should apply to the Ministry of National Security for the required authorisation prior to shipping to Jamaica, using the prescribed form. Failure to do so may result in the detention of the goods. Application processing time may be approximately 10 working days before a decision by the honourable minister to grant or not grant this authorisation is made,” the ministry states on its website.
Imitation firearms are also banned in certain circumstances under the Firearms Act.
Yesterday, parent Miguel Wellington questioned how these toys made it into the country.
“How did these get past Customs? These so-called toys are easily mistaken for real guns. Imagine if it’s night and you see one. My son cannot take home these toys. If a teacher catch him with it at school, don’t call the police, call me,” he said.
Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness yesterday morning directed the Jamaica Customs Agency to fully implement scanners at the island’s ports to detect illegal items, particularly weapons, entering the country. While not referencing imitation firearms, he gave the directive during his keynote address at this year’s National Security Council Seminar.