JUSTICE Minister Naomi Long is seeking an urgent meeting with Chief Constable Jon Boutcher after it emerged that 40,000 rounds of ammunition have gone missing from a PSNI training college.
A senior police officer was arrested last month in connection with the disappearance of the ammo from the PSNI's Steeple Campus in Antrim, but only now is the reason for the arrest emerging.
Police said in a statement that a quantity of the missing ammunition had been recovered during a search of premises and that the arrested officer has been suspended from duty.
The missing ammo was reported by a number of newspapers at the weekend, where it was also claimed that some of the tens of thousands of rounds of 9mm ammo were used in a gun club. It was further suggested that the transfer of ammo from the training college to the gun club had been going on for some time.
It's not known what kind of ammo has gone missing. In March this year it emerged that the PSNI is to roll out the issuing of 'hollow-point' 9mm ammunition for use with the Glock 17 weapon that officers routinely carry. A hollow-point round immediately expands on contact and inflicts a much more devastating entry wound than a standard round. But it is much less likely to exit a targeted person as most of the kinetic energy is used up in the initial impact, which is why they are preferred by an increasing number of law enforcement agencies around the world.
“Clearly, these allegations are profoundly concerning given the potential risk to public safety,” Mrs Long said.
QUESTIONS: Justice Minister Naomi Long wants to meet Chief Constable Jon Boutcher as she seeks information about the missing ammo
“And I intend to seek urgent assurances from the Chief Constable about the mitigations he will introduce to prevent this from happening again; however, as they are currently subject of an ongoing police investigation, it would be inappropriate to comment at this time as to do so could jeopardise that work.”
The PSNI said in a statement: “A serving police officer was arrested on the 8th of October 2025 and, following premises searches, a significant quantity of suspected stolen ammunition has been recovered. The officer has been suspended.”
The incident has thrown the issue of security at PSNI facilities into sharp focus. It had been assumed in the wake of countless incidents at RUC and British army facilities here over the course of the conflict that the handling and storing of ammunition and weapons had been tightened to such an extent that further disappearances and thefts were impossible.
