Toronto police launch gun buyback

Program will pay $200 to $350 for handguns and long guns as part of an effort to combat firearm violence in the city

Toronto police are hoping to recover hundreds of guns through a firearm buyback program that they hope will help fight violence in the city.

Chief Mark Saunders and Mayor John Tory noted that the three-week program launched Friday isn’t a magic pill, but said it is among several measures that can help deal with increasing gun crime.

“Nobody here today, including in particular me, will suggest this represents an answer or the answer to cause gun violence to disappear in this city, but it is one more step that we can take,” Tory told reporters at a news conference at police headquarters. “The message is simple: give up your guns.”

There have been 106 shootings in Toronto so far this year, up slightly from 102 this time last year, police statistics show.

Tory said the latest program is in response to a marked surge in gun violence last year.

Toronto set a record in 2018 with 96 homicides recorded for the year. The number of homicides caused by shootings went up by nearly 30 per cent from 2017, according to the force’s statistics.

The mayor has repeatedly called for a handgun ban in the city, particularly in the wake of a shooting rampage in Toronto’s Greektown neighbourhood that left two people dead last year.

“We would like to see hundreds of guns and have budgeted several hundred thousand dollars,” Tory said of the buyback program.

Saunders said unwanted guns present a danger if they fall into the wrong hands, saying they could be stolen and sold on the streets.

“One less gun off the street is a success,” he said.

Police will offer $350 for a handgun and $200 for a long gun — once officers determine it hasn’t been used in a crime. There is limited immunity for those who participate in the program that runs until May 17, explained Insp. Chris Boddy.

“The immunity is to the possession of the firearm,” Boddy said.

In the United States, many programs offer full amnesty by way of guaranteeing anonymity but that isn’t the case here, Boddy said.

“If any of you were victimized by a firearm, I don’t think you’d expect the criminal to anonymously turn in their evidence for the police to destroy and turn around and give that criminal financial compensation,” Boddy said.