Project Safe City collects hundreds of illegal guns

The seized firearms, which include 150 handguns and 250 rifles and shotguns, were all at one time legally registered.

"Many of these firearms had been handed down from one generation to another," Toronto Police Supt. Greg Getty told reporters during a news conference at police headquarters Tuesday, Sept. 22. "These aren't coming from gun nuts. These are coming from predominantly law-abiding citizens who have come into possession through a number of reasons."

The investigation, dubbed Project Safe City, began March 1 and was conducted by the gun and gang task force.

Those found with an illegal gun were given the option of surrendering the weapon for destruction or to come into compliance with the Firearms Act. "Most people didn't want them (the guns)," Getty said.

No criminal charges were laid.

"This is a crime prevention initiative," said Getty. "We have a responsibility to ensure that these firearms are not diverted to the streets of Toronto."

There have been 259 shootings in Toronto so far this year, injuring 135 people and killing 23.

Police Chief Bill Blair said 30 per cent of crime guns are domestically sourced while 70 per cent are smuggled in from the U.S.

"We continue to see guns, in particular handguns, being accessible to criminals in our city," he said. "People who are less than vigilant about maintaining their proper licensing to possess a firearm and the registration for those firearms may be equally lax in maintaining the safety and security of their weapons. We want to ensure that people who are in possession of the weapons are doing everything they can to keep those guns out of the hands of criminals. That means keeping their guns properly secured and stored."

There are about 2.3 million registered firearms in the province. It is estimated that there are as many as 4,000 unregistered firearms in Toronto.

A total of 1,576 firearms have been seized by Toronto Police so far this year.