JOHNSON CITY, NY (WIVT/WBGH) – On Saturday, April 29th, the Johnson City Police Department hosted a community gun buyback event in conjunction with New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office.

340 guns were collected, the most at any gun buyback in the Southern Tier.

Since 2019, more than 7,000 guns have been removed from New York State communities in these events.

Local officials were excited about the turnout.

“We are happy to partner with Attorney General James on the unwanted gun buyback program,” said Johnson City Mayor Martin Meaney. “One of the many ways to curb gun violence is to reduce the number of guns that may become available to bad people. If we remove only one gun from the street that has the potential to fall into criminal hands, we win!”

JC Police Chief Brent Dodge said, ““We are glad to help present this opportunity for community members to dispose of any unwanted firearms that might otherwise possibly fall into the wrong hands.”

And Broome County Executive Jason Garnar said, ““I appreciate the partnership between Attorney General James, our municipal leaders, and local police departments to keep firearms from getting into the wrong hands. These efforts not only make our neighborhoods safer for residents, but they also protect our police and other first responders when they answer an emergency call.”