Police have seized nearly 500 firearms from a property in Gore, which they are calling “a shocking discovery that is believed to be one of New Zealand’s largest seizures of weaponry”.

Police are now piecing together exactly how the man came to be in possession of so many firearms, and have begun the process of logging each one into evidence.

Concerns about the man’s purchasing history led officers to his home in Gore in early June to serve a notice of temporary suspension – an order allowing police to retain a firearms licence holder’s permit and uplift any firearms in the person’s possession.

A total of 478 firearms of different descriptions were seized, including five pistols, some that may be prohibited firearms, and some that may be restricted weapons, for which the man was not licenced, police said.

Significant quantities of ammunition, and firearm parts were also recovered.

Only six of the 478 firearms were registered in the man’s name, and while some were locked in safes, a large number were unsecure.

Southland Area Commander Inspector Mike Bowman said, “It’s shocking to see so many firearms unsecured… the scale of it is concerning.”

“It was largest seizure of firearms ever seen in the Southern District by far,” Bowman said.

“No charges have been laid, but that may change, depending on the investigation,” he said.

The investigation will look at why the weapons weren’t registered or stored properly, and what was the purpose of such a vast collection.

Bowman said it was too soon to say if any of the firearms were destined to be sold to criminal groups.

“A number of enquiries are being made into this discovery, but the sheer number of firearms involved means that will take some time,” Bowman said.

Unusual purchases

It was the man’s purchase history that caught the attention of officials.

“Through the Firearms Registry, the Firearms Safety Authority was able to establish the man had purchased multiple firearms since 2023, and not all were registered as they should have been after purchase,” Bowman said.

“In buying a firearm, the man was required to register older firearms already in his possession, and we allege that did not happen.”

Because of the number of firearms located, multiple police vehicles were required to transport them from the property.

The firearms, ammo and parts will be held securely by police until the investigation, and any legal action that may follow, is complete.

Their future is unclear: “It’s still early days in the investigation and we have a lot of work to do before we get to that point,” Bowman said.

Swift action after red flags raised

Firearms Safety Authority Executive Director Angela Brazier, said the case highlighted the value of the Firearms Registry, and of close co-operation between the authority and frontline police.

“Information shared by police enabled us to quickly suspend the man’s licence for failing to comply with his Registry obligations,” Brazier said.

“Once his licence was suspended, police could rapidly respond to remove this considerable number of unlawfully held firearms,” she said.

“The majority of firearms licence holders are good law-abiding people.”

The review of the Firearms Registry released in May confirmed that diversion of firearms to the black market remains a threat to public safety and the registry mitigates that risk.

“I acknowledge all licence holders who have filled in the registry and are doing their bit to make it harder for criminals and other unlicensed people to access firearms,” Brazier said.

Two years into its five-year journey there are more than 86,000 active licence holders registered, or 38 percent of active licence holders.

Around 29 percent of those registered did so proactively, without waiting for the legal requirement of an activating circumstance.

There are more than 425,000 firearms listed in the registry.