WEARE, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire police department is adding semiautomatic weapons to its arsenal nearly two years after getting rid of them amid scrutiny over a fatal officer involved shooting.
Weare Police Chief Sean Kelly tells The Concord Monitor six patrol rifles were donated last month by an anonymous benefactor. Selectmen approved the donation in December.
Kelly says the benefactor wanted to ensure that the department can handle dangerous emergencies, particularly those involving active shooters.
John Velleca, the town’s last police chief, got rid of the department’s semiautomatic weapons in 2014 after a fatal drug bust left a man dead in 2013. Velleca said at the time that officers weren’t properly trained.
Kelley says the new guns will stay locked up until every member of the department has been trained.
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