With this approval, the Bonn police will be able to set up a weapons and knife ban zone in the future, which includes the heavily frequented areas around Bonn's main railway station: the station forecourt, Poststraße, Wesselstraße, the central bus station, Kaiserplatz and Hofgarten.
(Please see the press release from IM NRW at https://polizei.nrw/presse/polizei-nordrhein-westfalen-fuehrt-neue-waffenverbotszonen-in-bielefeld-bonn-hamm-und-muenster-ein ).
The gun and knife ban zone will apply during the periods in which an increased number of crimes have been recorded in Bonn city center in the past: From 12:00 on Fridays to 03:00 on Mondays and before a public holiday, from 12:00 to 03:00 on the day after the public holiday.
During these periods, over and above the existing regulations of the Weapons Act, it will be prohibited to carry weapons, knives and dangerous objects in the designated zone.
The powers of the police will be extended so that the police will be able to take preventative action within a weapons and knives prohibition zone by carrying out checks and confiscating weapons, knives and dangerous objects detected without a specific reason and sanctioning violations.
"We are delighted that our application has been approved. The forthcoming establishment of the weapons and knives prohibition zone will complement our concept for combating knife crime well. In addition to our existing priority operations, the bans on carrying knives against identified criminals, the strategic manhunt and our mobile video surveillance, the establishment of the weapons and knife ban zone is an additional important element in further increasing security in the city center," explained Bonn Police Chief Frank Hoever.
The Bonn police's Danger Prevention/Employment Directorate, which has been in close contact with the higher state authorities since the application was submitted and has carried out the necessary preparatory work, will continue to work on the prompt implementation of the no-weapons and no-knives zone once approval has been granted.
The Bonn police will announce the date on which the no-weapons and no-knives zone will come into force and the applicable regulations in good time. There will also be clear signage on site to indicate the zone and the applicable regulations.