DPD Gun Buy Back Program "Successful"
DETROIT (WWJ) - Detroit police say their gun buy back program was so successful, they ran out of money.
Standing aside dozens of officers who were part of a special operation, Detroit Police Chief Ralph Godbee detailed the success of the program.
"We took up a total of 739 weapons were turned in, which breaks down to 339 long guns, 376 handguns and 24 assault rifles. We paid out over $20,000 in cash," Godbee said.
One man even brought in two grenades, which police took and destroyed but didn't pay him for. The company behind the event, Continental Management, was prepared to pay out $20,000 but ran out of money before it was over. Those who didn't get paid will get vouchers in the coming weeks.
"Those are 739 guns that will not be utilized number one, to hurt one of my officers, number two, to hurt one of our citizens and number three, a young person will not get ahold of that gun and hurt themselves," Godbee said.
The Chief said since that deadly shooting weekend earlier this month, they have merged the east and west side special operations teams to target "hot spots" on the streets of Detroit. Since the merge, they've confiscated an average of 11 guns per day.
