Congleton residents are being advised not to carry mock guns in public.

Cheshire Police has released a video warning people of the dangers of carrying BB guns and imitation firearms following some recent incidents in the county.

The force wants to highlight how dangerous the situation could be for someone carrying an imitation firearm who may mistakenly think they are just 'just having a laugh'.

Such 'guns' can look real and not only cause alarm in the community, which results in phone calls to police, but also potential harm to those carrying the imitation firearm when our officers are called to attend.

Insp Iain Hannan from the Cheshire and North Wales Firearms and Dogs Alliance said: "My firearms officers have to treat every call as genuine and a life and death situation.

"They have to make very quick judgements to protect both the public and unarmed officers from serious harm.

"You might be messing about with your mates and waving the gun around, thinking it's a harmless bit of fun, but when a report comes in of a male with a gun in a public place my officers have to make a call as to just how much of a threat you are.

"They have to decide if the firearm is real, and it can be hard to tell from a distance. You don't want to be in a situation where you have firearms officers pointing real guns at you, and they don't want to be in this positon either.

"So please, before you head out with any imitation firearm or BB gun, think - don't put yourself in what could be a very dangerous situation.

"There is also the potential you are committing a criminal offence, which could get yourself a criminal record for what may seem like harmless fun."

It is unknown if any of the recent imitation gun incidents were from Congleton.

Congleton Nub News has submitted a Freedom of Information request.

The timing of the video's release also follows the death of Ukranian cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, after American actor Alec Baldwin fired a gun being used as a prop.

Congleton: You can view the video released by Cheshire Constabulary above.

See Also: Undercover cops have been at Congleton schools this week to protect girls

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