PSNI Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde has revealed that weapons found in the aftermath of two murders in north and west Belfast earlier this week followed information which had been passed on by the public.
Not all the seizures were necessarily linked to the killings, but speaking in Washington DC today Mr Orde claimed: "I think these communities are very clear - they do not want that to happen. They are very aware of how it plays out nationally and internationally."
On Monday, Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams said people should assist the PSNI with its murder investigations.
"If they did not die of natural causes, if they were killed, then anyone with any information should bring that information to the police and should co-operate to bring the perpetrators to justice," he said.
The murders of taxi driver Joey Jones, 38, bludgeoned to death in Ardoyne, and father-of-five Eddie Burns, 36, shot dead near a GAA club on the Falls Road, have been linked to tensions among dissident republicans.
One man admitted to hospital with gunshot wounds is to be questioned about the killings. Sir Hugh said:
"This is very worrying in the sense that two people have lost their lives. This is a major investigation and we are seeing greater support from within the community which clearly does not want that kind of crime to continue.
"We want the people responsible to be take out of circulation as quickly as possible. "These are people who are on the margins anyway. They do not want to have a peaceful solution. They are committed to violence, but sadly that violence has imploded on themselves. It is not a threat to the main thrust of the peace process in any way, shape or form."