Gun city: Young, dumb and armed
The Age's investigation into how Melbourne became a gun city.
(Scary stuff as the worst bits of the US come to Australia)
While the body count was higher during Melbourne’s ‘Underbelly War’ (1999-2005), more people have been seriously maimed in the recent spate of shootings and reprisals.
Crimes associated with firearm possession have also more than doubled, driven by the easy availability of handguns, semi-automatic rifles, shotguns and, increasingly, machine guns, that are smuggled into the country or stolen from licensed owners.
These weapons have been used in dozens of recent drive-by shootings of homes and businesses, as well as targeted and random attacks in parks, shopping centres and roads.
“They’re young, dumb and armed,” said one former underworld associate, who survived a shooting attempt in the western suburbs several years ago.
“It used to be that if you were involved in something bad you might have to worry about [being shot]. Now people get shot over nothing - unprovoked.”
The violence reached a fever pitch in March, when there were two shootings a day for a week. Police are seizing a firearm every two days from cars stopped in the north-western suburbs, which have been dubbed the city’s “red zone” for gun crime.
Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Fontana says law enforcement authorities are deeply concerned by the availability of weapons and the thriving gun culture among some young men, who appear willing to use firearms to settle the most trivial of disputes.
The Age's investigation into how Melbourne became a gun city.
(Scary stuff as the worst bits of the US come to Australia)
While the body count was higher during Melbourne’s ‘Underbelly War’ (1999-2005), more people have been seriously maimed in the recent spate of shootings and reprisals.
Crimes associated with firearm possession have also more than doubled, driven by the easy availability of handguns, semi-automatic rifles, shotguns and, increasingly, machine guns, that are smuggled into the country or stolen from licensed owners.
These weapons have been used in dozens of recent drive-by shootings of homes and businesses, as well as targeted and random attacks in parks, shopping centres and roads.
“They’re young, dumb and armed,” said one former underworld associate, who survived a shooting attempt in the western suburbs several years ago.
“It used to be that if you were involved in something bad you might have to worry about [being shot]. Now people get shot over nothing - unprovoked.”
The violence reached a fever pitch in March, when there were two shootings a day for a week. Police are seizing a firearm every two days from cars stopped in the north-western suburbs, which have been dubbed the city’s “red zone” for gun crime.
Victoria Police Assistant Commissioner Stephen Fontana says law enforcement authorities are deeply concerned by the availability of weapons and the thriving gun culture among some young men, who appear willing to use firearms to settle the most trivial of disputes.
