Police are appealing for help from the public to find 12 guns that were stolen from a property in Smythesdale.
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The firearms were all located in two separate safes stolen from the Vermont Road property on Thursday, April 8 at about 1.40pm.
There were 13 stolen in total, but just one has been recovered.
There was also a significant amount of ammunition stolen, much of which has since been found at a property in Invermay.
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The stolen safes were found in the Enfield State Forrest on April 18, but they had been opened and emptied.
Just one firearm has since been recovered, in Creswick, and was used in an alleged attempted burglary.
Police have since made a major breakthrough, with four men arrested and charged. However, detectives remain desperate to track down the firearms.
Western Region Crime Squad Detective Senior Constable Haydn Templeton said having the guns in the community was of great concern.
He urged the public to help find the guns, bring the offenders to justice and make the community safer.
"The Western Region Crime Squad will continue to work tirelessly to investigate this incident and do all we can to locate these firearms and hold offenders to account," he said.
"We're asking for the community's help to report any information they may have about the location of the stolen firearms so we can ensure they don't fall into the hands of any criminals who may wish to cause harm in our community.
"While we believe this theft was a targeted incident, they are often opportunistic and could have potentially been prevented by the installation of a purpose made commercial gun safe."
A 23-year-old from Solders Hill, a 33-year-old from Werribee, a 26-year-old from Ballarat and a 28-year-old from Sebastopol have been charged with a range of offences including possession of a traffickable quantity of firearms, prohibited person possess firearms, burglary and theft.
The Sebastopol male has also been charged with arson after the car alleged to have be used in the incident was located burnt out at an industrial area in Mitchell Park on May 16.
All four men have been remanded to appear at Ballarat Magistrates' Court on September 9.
The stolen guns are as follows: Parker Hale 12 Gauge Shotgun, Lambar 12 Gauge Shotgun, Adler 13220 12 Guge Shotgun, Marlin .44 Mag long Arm, Rugar 6.5 Cremoor, Mauser 270 Longarm, Ruger Longarm, Mauser .257 Longarm, Howa 300 Longarm, BSA .22 Hornet, Rugar M77 220swift, Bruno 2 .22 Longarm.
Anyone with information about the stolen firearms is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
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