UK: Notice of Seizure

[ritch]

Hello all,

First post here although I've been enjoying reading for a while now.

I just thought I'd let people from the UK know that apparently knives with flippers are being classed as gravity knives by UK customs.

I ordered a pair of CRKT Desert Cruiser knives because they were going really cheap on ebay but they have been confiscated. Just a warning to people who are getting things sent from the states.

Cheers guys,

Ritchie

 

[OmegaA]

Ritchie,

Please take it seriously - police in the UK is very edgy nowadays. Do not be surprised if they will come now to arrest you and search your house. IT IS THAT SERIOUS! It may take up to 1-2 months to react, but osemtimes it takes much faster.
It is not the worst - if they come and arrest you, YOU ARE MOST LIKELY WILL BE CHARGED! Not immediately, but later. Do not admit it is an prohibited offensive weapon! You will be asked how often you bought the knives from the USA. Say it was the first time ,you never bought anything like this before, you did not know it was prohibited, try to find shops in the UK that sell them. If you can find it on ebay, say you bought it from British ebay, tat you did not know it would be sent from abroad.
IT IS VERY SERIOUS! If you admit, you will get prison sentence, no joke.
Knives + importation laws are so bizzare in the UK that most likely you will not find an expert who knows them both.
In any way, STAY AWAY FROM GOLDSMITH CHAMBERS solicitors and barristers, especially Hugh Blake-James. They claim to be experts in weapons laws, but they are just praying on people who don't understand the law. Hugh Blake-James put in prison people by advising them to plead guilty when they should have pleaded otherwise.
If you are charged under importation law (Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 I think), then you may get (legally) upto 10 years, but most likely more than 1 year imprisonment. However, they must prove first that you knew the item was illegal and you ordered it from abroad anyway. This is almost impossible if you have a good lawyer, but as I said before, even lawyers who claikm to be experts in this field do not understand the law properly.
However, if you are charged under Criminal Justice Act 1988, then you have no defence. The good thing about it, though, it is maximum 6 months imprisonment, so you may get away even with a community service.
Please take it seriously, take any chance to drop the charge available - get in touch with your local MP is one of the good methods. If you are a good citizen, MP can sometimes press on police to drop the charge.
Check your house that you do not have anything illegal, or what may seem illegal - police will pervert evidence anyway, remember this, some kitchen knives will become "offensive weapons", airsoft guns will become "illegal replica guns" etc.
Please take it seriously. If I were you, I would first of all take Customs to court. Yes, I know they threaten to ask you £1500 if you lose the case, but if the matter goes out of control, you will lose your good live. By taking Customs to Court you show that you did it genuinely, you did not know about prohibition.
I wish you real good luck, you will now need it.
Good solicitors to deal with this matter - Julian Young (London) and Kelcey and Hall (Bristol). Bad ones - most of them.

 

[ritch]

OmegaA,

Thanks for the response,

I did not realise it could be that serious. The way the information was presented to me by them indicated that they had just confiscated the items and that was that. Thankfully I do not have anything in the house that is illegal but I do appreciate that anything could be considered inappropriate to possess the way things are going.

The gent I bought the items from offered to send me another one cheap but, (sensibly I feel) I thanked him and turned him down on his offer. I find it frankly absurd that items that are sold in this country (assisted openers) are legal, yet flippers are deemed illegal.

I wont take anyone to court but should they come here looking to make an example of me or some other idiocy I will fight them tooth and nail. I WILL NOT be criminalised for the importation of a completely legal item to satisfy some jobsworth's quota. Frankly I'm sick of the stupidity that prevails in this country that a piece of steel is dangerous by itself. INTENT is the danger. A sharpened toothbrush is a weapon in the hands of someone with intent.

Anyhow, I appreciate your response and will think carefully about the ramifications of a potentially overzealous government agency. Hopefully the nanny state attitude in this country will subside once we get a conservative government in power again, however I do not hold out much hope of that. The criminalisation of the average person seem to be a hobby these days in this country regardless of the party in power.

Thanks again for your response,

Ritchie