Bermuda Police has increased its focus on firearm investigations after a rise in reports from the public. Reporter Karen Smith finds out what the concerns are.

It may seem humorous, but among the haul of seized firearms held at Bermuda Police HQ is a toy James Bond handgun with the numbers 007 on the side.

To all intense and purposes, it was designed as a fake weapon for young boys who wanted to play out the cops and robbers scenario in the safety of their home or street, where no one would get hurt.

But, the reality is that grown men are getting hold of such fakes and adapting them to look like the real thing - and the reason can only be sinister.

In this case, the customary red tip at the end of the pistol, put there to make it obvious that the weapon was fake, had been removed, and serious attempts had been made to totally scratch off the 007 figures, which had been moulded onto the side of the pistol.

At a short distance, or even worse, in the dark, to the untrained eye it would easily pass as a potentially deadly .25 automatic handgun.

Many toy guns are designed to be as realistic as possible, so unless you held it in your hand, and felt that it was made of plastic, or perhaps lightweight, you would never know the difference.

Others confiscated by members of Bermuda Police have included pellet guns, which could very easily take an eye out, and other fakes.

However, there have also been genuine handguns recovered on the Island, and each one has been sent to the FBI in the US for further investigation.

Police have been told, although it has never been confirmed, that firearms have been sold on the streets of Bermuda for up to $6,000.

And there was even a time when people claimed it was possible to 'hire' a handgun, at a cost, on the Island, provided you also paid a percentage of your profits, for example ten percent of the bank robbery takings..

But again that was never verified by Police.

However, the lengths some people will go to to obtain a firearm in Bermuda becomes very clear with the handmade wood and metal old-bore rifle that was confiscated a while ago.

It has been carefully crafted over many hours, and, with the ability to fire real shells, it could certainly have killed.

And people are certainly secretive when it comes to storing and keeping them. A loaded genuine gun was even dug up from the ground by a dog out for a walk with its owner.

Crime manager for Bermuda Police Det. Chief Insp. Andrew Boyce said the Force had become so concerned about the rise in reports of gun sightings, it had increased its firearm investigation unit.

But fake guns were also causing concern, so much so that officers had visited toy shops in a bid to inform retailers of their criminal use.

The most realistic ones have since been removed off the shelves.

The senior detective said: "In recent years, I have dealt with armed robberies where the fake weapons were not anywhere near as realistic as some of the ones we have here.

"Some of the robberies were committed at night time, but even during the day, they would have had the same effect.

"These fake guns can put absolute fear into people. If you don't know about guns, then you would believe it."

Among the incidents reported to Police recently was a woman who called to say she had seen a firearm in a residential swimming pool.

When officers arrived, it was indeed a gun, but it was a fake one.

He added: "For some reason, parents seem to think these guns are nice toys for their children. We want to advise parents not to buy a play gun for children because they could get into the wrong hands.

"But if they insist on buying a toy gun, then we would recommend one that is obviously fake in appearance, for example bright red plastic or green."

Det. Sgt. Calvin Smith, who heads up the Firearm Investigations Unit, said he believed there could also be genuine guns on the streets of Bermuda, and therefore any member of the public who thought they had sighted one, should inform Police immediately.

He added: "We have had some fairly credible reports of firearms being discharged in the last few months, but we have not had any injuries in recent times.

"If the hospital had received any gunshot victims, we would have been informed.

"But we are getting reports from people out there, and we must treat each one extremely seriously. We think some reports have substance."

Det. Chief Insp. Boyce said he recalled a number of gun reports involving guns that could have gone terribly wrong.

One involved a hotel manager who nervously called Police after a maid found a loaded Smith and Wesson. 38 Special, used by US police, in a room that had been vacated that day.

He added: "It was in immaculate condition, so you can imagine if something like that had come into the wrong hands.

"We discovered that it was actually an American businesswoman who had left it behind by mistake after leaving the hotel.

"We find a lot of business people carry their firearms when they go overseas with them, totally unaware of the gun laws in those countries."

And he recalled a second incident where an overseas government official was visiting Bermuda and staying at a hotel with his armed security officer.

"At the time, we had a prolific house breaker in operation and he just happened to target the place where they were staying," said Det. Chief Insp. Boyce.

"The burglar came across the gun and the ammunition and stole them. Being that he was a highly trained security guard, the gun was a high-powered weapon in immaculate condition. Obviously, it caused us some concern, but fortunately, within three days we had the gun back."

And the officer said he also remembered when a man was out walking his dog in Smith's Parish when his pet started to dig for something in the ground.

"The dog actually dug up a firearm that was loaded and in good condition," he continued.

"We were grateful that the man who found it was the kind of person to hand it in. He could easily have kept it for his own use.

"But that is also something that we see - it's common for people to bury their firearms. That is how they are kept until they are needed. They are stashed away."

The senior detective added: "We cannot stress enough how important it is for people to call us with information about any weapons.

"Even if the gun is not real, it could pose a serious threat to someone, or lead to a crime. Please contact us."