Justice campaigner Marsha Jones has welcomed news that Police stopped and searched over 50 people at the weekend in a bid to thwart anticipated firearms incidents.

As The Royal Gazette reported yesterday, officers invoked powers under the Criminal Code after getting information that there was "potential for gun activity" at events in Southampton and Paget on Friday.

They also conducted street searches in relation to reports that violence might be in the pipeline in the St. David's area on Saturday. Seven people were arrested on Friday some for drugs offences and some because they were wanted on warrants. One man was arrested on Saturday for drugs and one for possessing a bladed article.

The weekend passed without major incident.

According to a Police spokesperson, the operation was the result of members of the public supplying "critical information".

Ms Jones' only son, Shaundae Jones, 20, was gunned down as he was leaving the Club Malabar nightclub in Dockyard in April 2003. No one has ever been charged over the killing with Ms Jones believing that reluctance by people to help the Police has been a factor.

Greeting the action over the weekend, she said: "I think it's fantastic. The Police need to step up up their game and I'm really glad that's happening. We need to take our streets back.

"I think this is a step in the right direction as if they catch them unexpectedly, they'll probably have more success. I feel like the Country is being held hostage by fear and people are afraid. I have friends who are not going out in case something takes off and it's frightening to be in such a small community and have such things happening to us."

Gun crime has been a source of increasing concern in Bermuda in recent years. As of the first week of August, 14 gun incidents had been reported to Police so far for 2009. Although no up-to-date figure was available yesterday, at least three more have been reported in the news since then two attempted burglaries and the recent shooting of Richard Gaglio in the aftermath of a poker tournament at his Smith's home.

Ms Jones still holds out hope that someone might come forward with information that will help the Police solve her son's murder. She explained that a team of retired Police officers from the UK spent six months on the Island from September last year reviewing that case, along with four other unsolved murder cases.

However, she said: "They kept telling me they were happy with what they had put together but has any action been done on it? No not as far as I can see and it's been a year now since they arrived."

The Police have been tight-lipped over the work of the cold case team and who its members are despite multiple requests by this newspaper for information.