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ALBANY, N.Y. (WNY News Now) — In the past six months, New York State Police have reported a significant increase in gun seizures.
Governor Kathy Hochul announced on Thursday a 104 percent increase in gun seizures so far in 2022, compared to last year.
The reason, in part, is due to an investigation that led to the recovery of “30 guns, including six assault rifles, seven high-capacity magazines, twelve ghost gun pistols and assorted ghost guns parts.”
Since then, several arrests have been made in that case.
Governor Hochul is allocating $2.5 million to fund 14 positions in New York state’s Gun Trafficking Interdiction Unit as part of the 2023 budget.
This year unit, she says, was created last year to put a stop to gun trafficking and has seen in uptick in gun seizures because of the new initiative.
“We’ve had one goal, one goal, get illegal guns off our streets,” said Hochul. “This is the primary driver of crime that is violent. And this is where our focus has been. And I want to thank the unprecedented cooperation and the recognition we’re now receiving.”
As part of their initiative, State Troopers have seized nearly 800 guns since the beginning of the year. In total, more than 3,100 guns have been seized by law enforcement across the state.
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