Detective Sergeant Shaun Richardson:

Two men with gang connections are facing firearms charges following two unrelated search warrants in Wellington this week.

A 35-year-old man is due to appear in the Porirua District Court and a 42-year-old man in the Hutt Valley District Court.

Both will appear on Tuesday 18 August.

A prohibited AR-15 semi-automatic assault rifle was seized during a search warrant at a Porirua address on Wednesday.

A search warrant executed at a Lower Hutt property yesterday saw the seizure of two rifles and a large quantity of ammunition.

We are concerned that we continue to find prohibited firearms in the possession of people with links to gangs and who have them unlawfully.

We're highly motivated to take these weapons off our streets and we will continue to identify and prosecute these people.

Anyone with information about the illegal possession of firearms is urged to urgently contact Police on 111 if there is an immediate threat, or if not, via 105.

Alternatively you can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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