A small, nondescript Port Kembla gun shop at the centre of a large-scale police investigation into the movement of firearms across the country has had its locks changed and is now under the control of an Illawarra real estate agent.
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Locksmiths got to work at the Simpson Sports firearm and hunting specialist store on Friday afternoon; two days after its owner, Shane James Simpson, was taken away in handcuffs during a police raid.
Warning signs have also been erected at the shop, on the corner of Wentworth and Fitzwilliam streets, where roller shutters cover the windows and access is blocked by a closed gate.
Three laminated pieces of paper, stuck to the outside of the building, tell would-be customers and other passersby that the property is "now under the possession of MMJ South (Windang)".
"All locks to the property have been changed," one of the signs, headed 'attention', read.
"If you attempt to gain access to the property, legal action will be taken and you will be charged by the police for trespassing."
Simpson is accused of turning legal firearms into black-market weapons, with some of them linked to two Sydney gangland murders and other organised crime across the country.
The 46-year-old, from Jamberoo, was arrested as he began the day's trade on Wednesday. Almost 340 guns were then seized as police searched the business.
Simpson was charged with 47 firearm-related offences and did not apply for bail when his matter was mentioned, briefly, for the first time in Wollongong Local Court on Thursday.
His lawyer, Patrick Schmidt, is expected to make a release application when the case returns to court on Tuesday.
Simpson's arrest was the culmination of a five-month probe by the State Crime Command's Strike Force Myosoti, set up to investigate the movement of firearms between states and territories.
Investigators have, so far, identified more than 300 pistols Simpson allegedly disposed of illegally.
Police allege Simpson legitimately acquired the firearms as stock, before altering their original identification and disposing of them to people who were not authorised to possess them.
About 30 firearms have been recovered and linked to organised crime, including more than 20 pistols found at crime scenes in NSW.
A number of other firearms have been located at interstate crime scenes, including two linked to organised crime investigations in South Australia and a clandestine drug laboratory in Queensland.
All seized firearms have undergone tracing by the ballistics unit to determine their origin and police say they are linked to Simpson.