People are being urged to hand in ‘Ninja swords’ as the force takes part in a national amnesty.
Nottinghamshire Police is joining forces across the country to support the initiative, which aims to help remove further dangerous weapons from our streets.
The amnesty will take place from 1 to 31 July ahead of it becoming illegal to own, sell, or import ninja swords in England and Wales on 1 August.
A ninja sword is defined as a blade between 14 and 24 inches in length, with a primary and secondary straight cutting edge, a blunt spine, and either a tanto-style point or a reversed tanto-style point.
Anyone found in possession of one of these weapons after 1 August 2025 will be breaking the law and could face prosecution, including a potential prison sentence.
Under the updated Offensive Weapons Act, it will be illegal to keep these weapons in any private settings, including the home.
The law change follows years of campaigning by the family of Ronan Kanda, who was killed in Wolverhampton on 29 June 2022, in a case of mistaken identity, by two teenagers in possession of a ninja sword.
Anyone who owns a ninja sword is being urged to hand them in safely and anonymously before the new law comes into effect.
To encourage the surrender of these weapons, owners will be offered £5 compensation per item, but only during the four-week surrender period and if it was purchased before 27 March 2025.
Compensation is only available when the weapon is handed in at one of the designated police stations listed below.
Central Police Station (Byron House) 2a Byron House, Maid Marion Way Nottingham NG1 4BH
Mansfield Police Station, Great Central Road Mansfield Nottinghamshire NG18 2HQ
Newark Police Station, Queens Road Newark, Nottinghamshire NG24 1LJ
Oxclose Lane Police Station, Arnold Nottingham NG5 6FZ
Radford Road Police Station, Radford Road Nottingham NG7 5GX
Please take care when bringing a weapon to a surrender location. Items must be wrapped up and placed in a sealed bag or box. They must not be carried openly at any time.
If you are a retailer or member of the public who intends to surrender more than 10 items at one time, you must contact the designated police station in advance to make an appointment.
Anyone wishing to take part in the surrender and compensation scheme must first complete a short form and provide ID.
More information is available at: Ninja sword surrender and compensation scheme – GOV.UK
Chief Inspector Kylie Davies, the force’s knife crime lead, said:
“We welcome this national initiative to help rid our communities of dangerous and offensive weapons and are happy to support it.
“These swords have no place on our streets.
“The scheme is running for four weeks, so that’s plenty of time for anyone who has one of these weapons in their home to hand it in at one of our designated stations, and we strongly encourage them to do so.
“We’ve had some good successes with our previous knife surrenders, including 222 weapons handed in across the county during the most recent Sceptre in May.
“This surrender supports our wider work to tackle knife crime and serious violence. Every weapon handed in is one less that could be used to cause harm and help to make our communities safer.”
