KUALA LUMPUR: Online traders selling imitation firearms known as gel blasters have been decreasing and restricting their presence on e-commerce platforms following the New Straits Times' expose of the illicit activities.
Checks online by the NST since the revelation on Monday found that sellers are now advising their customers to delete conversations related to purchases.
If there's any chat regarding our dealings (of the gel blasters), (if the authorities ask you) say it is from online e-commerce platforms.
Those who I have chatted with (for gel blasters), please delete it for my and your safety," wrote one seller in a private group chat.
Another anonymous participant in a Facebook group also warned the "gel blaster community" of the authorities' tightening grip on its sales.
On each of the postings, sellers and users also attached a police press statement on the seizures of gel blasters and the NST's front page on the issue.
On social media platforms such as TikTok, where the items were being sold on live sessions, several prominent accounts had gone private.
However, several smaller accounts are still brazenly selling the imitation firearms.
These items, which mimic the appearance and functionality of real firearms, go against the Firearms (Increased Penalties) Act 1971, which strictly regulates their possession and sale.
Checks by the NST over the past two months found these gel blasters being sold on e-commerce platforms for as low as RM150.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain said, police last year recorded 148 cases involving the use of these toy guns in crime, the majority of which saw criminals using them to rob their victims.