APD disposal program yields stolen guns

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Albuquerque police launched its first official gun disposal program on Saturday, hoping to prevent future crimes by collecting unwanted guns - no questions asked - and destroying them.

But it may also help answer questions in crimes that have already been committed.

APD says it already destroys an average of 120 firearms a month. A final count of this weekend's collection reveals they got more than a third of that in just one day.

Police say they collected 45 weapons, 20 pounds of black powder used for old guns and firework and boxes upon boxes of ammunition, 13,000 rounds to be exact.

It is all going to be destroyed as part of Albuquerque Police Department's program to get guns off the street. All except a few that may provide answers.

"If it is stolen, we confirm it. We tag it back into evidence,” says Lt. Arturo Gonzalez.

He says a run of the serial number through a national database pointed to three stolen guns.

Gonzalez says those were not linked to other crimes, so the original owners will be contacted to see if they want their guns back.

But four other weapons will require more investigating.

"This is the type of weapon we'll turn over to the physical identification unit,” Lt. Gonzalez says about a handgun. Its serial number was shaved off. In fact, the handgun has been altered so drastically, Gonzalez says he is not even sure of the caliber or make of the gun.

That is when the experts refer to their gun library where they can compare it to the original gun and try to restore the serial number.

Even if they are not successful and the guns are chopped up, Lt. Gonzalez says the program will have served its purpose to get another dangerous weapon off the street.

“Those are the type of guns we really like to have off the street, for obvious reasons.”