On April 24, 2025, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch, alongside community leaders, oversaw the destruction of 3,575 seized illegal firearms at Reworld in Westbury, NY, reinforcing the city’s aggressive stance against gun violence. Part of over 21,400 guns confiscated since Adams’ tenure began, the destroyed weapons, including 3,375 handguns and 200 rifles, will be repurposed by Coop Tech students into a memorial for gun violence victims. The initiative aligns with a 22.7% drop in homicides and a 42.2% reduction in shootings since 2022, with 2025’s first quarter marking historic lows in shootings and transit murders. Over 1,400 ghost guns were among the seizures, prompting Adams’ advocacy for stricter regulations. The Gun Violence Strategies Partnership and Neighborhood Safety Teams continue to drive down crime, with a 10.9% reduction in overall index crime citywide.
Mayor Adams, NYPD Commissioner Tisch, Community Leaders and Activists Destroy 3,575 Seized Illegal Firearms, Furthering Mission to end Gun Violence and Keep New Yorkers Safe
More Than 21,400 Illegal Guns Have Been Seized Since Start of Adams Administration
More Than 1,600 Gun Seizures Year-to-Date Have Led to Historic
Declines in Gun Violence, Including Double-Digit Declines in Murders
Shootings Down in All Five Boroughs Following Quarter with Fewest Shootings in History
NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York City Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch, and various community and faith activists and leaders today celebrated the destruction of 3,375 seized illegal handguns and 200 rifles. The firearms — a small fraction of the more than 21,400 seized firearms under the Adams administration — were demolished at evidence destruction vendor Reworld in Westbury, New York to ensure a safe and secure disposal process.
“Today, we say goodbye and good riddance to thousands of illegal guns that no longer threaten the safety of our neighborhoods, our families, or our children by sending over 3,500 illegal guns off to their final destination: into a gun chipper to be turned into scrap metal and eventually recycled,” said Mayor Adams. “These guns will never be used again to endanger another child, terrify another New Yorker, or destroy another life. Although today’s destruction has dammed up one more river that leads to the sea of violence, we know that there is always more work to be done. We will keep pressing for more — more officers, more safety, more results. And because of our continued mission to eradicate gun violence, New York City continues to be the safest big city in America.”
“Destroying these 3,575 illegal guns is the final step in a process that starts with precision policing — identifying the right targets, recovering the right weapons, and getting them off our streets for good,” said NYPD Commissioner Tisch. “Every one of these guns was in the hands of someone who never should’ve had it. And each one represents a violent act that was prevented because the NYPD got there first. This is how you drive down shootings, and it’s exactly what we’ll keep doing. Thank you to Mayor Adams for giving us the tools, the support, and the backing to do this work at the highest level.”
The firearms destroyed today will be donated to the School of Cooperative Technical Education (Coop Tech), part of New York City Public Schools. Students who are enrolled in the Coop Tech welding vocational program will repurpose the metal and create a memorial to honor the many victims and their families who have been affected by gun violence. The memorial will aim to represent not only the resilience of New York City after tragedy but also act as a reminder for generations to come that it is never acceptable to possess an illegal firearm or commit violence against another individual.
Because of the Adams administration’s steadfast focus on eradicating gun violence, homicides and shootings have consistently declined over the last three years, dropping a total of 22.7 percent and 42.2 percent, respectively. Through the first three months of 2025, homicides decreased by 34.4 percent and shootings decreased by 23.1 percent compared to the same period the previous year, representing 50 fewer shooting victims. Quarter one of 2025 had the second-lowest number of homicides in the city’s recorded first-quarter history, and marked the first time in seven years that the city has had zero murders in the transit system. Additionally, quarter one had the lowest number of shootings for any three-month period in the city’s recorded history.
These historic declines in gun violence were also accompanied by a 10.9 percent reduction in overall index crime across the city through March 31, with major reductions in crime and shootings in all five boroughs.
Out of the more than 21,400 guns seized since the beginning of the Adams administration, over 1,400 of them have been identified as ghost guns — unserialized, and therefore untraceable, firearms that are put together by components purchased either as a kit or as separate pieces or printed through 3-D printers, and that are fully-functioning just like fully-finished, serialized firearms. These untraceable firearms often end up in the hands of criminals, as well as underage purchasers. Incidents involving ghost guns reflect a dangerously escalating trend, one that the NYPD is leading the charge against. The NYPD recovered 17 ghost guns in 2018, 48 in 2019, 150 in 2020, 263 in 2021, 585 in 2022, 394 in 2023, 438 in 2024, and already 71 so far year-to-date.
In July 2024, Mayor Adams led the charge in urging the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold commonsense ghost gun regulations. Along with Mayors Against Illegal Guns and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., Mayor Adams announced the filing of an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court in Garland v. VanDerStok, in support of federal regulations issued by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that require ghost gun parts to have serial numbers and compel background checks for prospective buyers of ghost gun home-assembly kits.
Ending gun violence continues to be Mayor Adams’ top priority. In his first month in office, in January 2022, Mayor Adams released the “Blueprint to End Gun Violence,” which laid out his priorities to immediately address the crisis of guns on New York City streets. Pursuant to the blueprint, in March 2022, the NYPD launched its Neighborhood Safety Teams to focus on gun violence prevention in areas that account for a disproportionate number of citywide shootings.
Mayor Adams’ comprehensive gun violence strategy also includes upstream solutions guided by the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force he established in June 2022, which focuses on diversion programs, prevention efforts, and expanded opportunities for young people — all targeting the root causes of gun violence to ensure a safer environment for all New Yorkers. The task force’s commitments are formalized in the “Blueprint for Community Safety,” an investment of nearly $500 million to create safer, more resilient communities, with a focus on intervention and prevention.
The Adams administration also leads the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, a 30+ multi-agency law enforcement partnership focused on strengthening investigations and prosecutions of the most severe gun offenders who drive violence in New York City. Members of the team meet every weekday morning to review felony gun violence arrests from the previous 24 hours and share intelligence to ensure perpetrators are held accountable and New Yorkers are kept safe. The partnership reviewed more than 700 cases in 2024, resulting in 85.5 percent of individuals held on bail or remand.
“These-firearms were used to destroy lives and communities,” said Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark. “It is sad that we continue to see so many guns in our city, but we will keep working together to remove them from the hands of criminals.”
“The destruction of deadly weapons keeps them off our streets and out of the hands of people intent on causing harm,” said Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. “I commend the mayor, the New York City Police Department, and my prosecutors for their dedication to working to protect all New Yorkers from gun violence as we continue to see historic decreases in shootings and murders in Brooklyn and elsewhere.”
“Removing illegal guns off our streets is vital to ensuring lasting public safety in our city, and I welcome the destruction and removal of these dangerous weapons that directly threaten the safety of all New Yorkers,” said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. “Through our strong collaboration with the police commissioner and mayor, shootings were down 45 percent, and homicides were down 20 percent in Manhattan between 2021 and 2024, and we will continue to take an aggressive and holistic approach to combatting gun violence.”
“Without a doubt, the prevalence of illegal firearms, including untraceable ghost guns and deadly assault weapons, make New York City less safe. Working with our dedicated partners in the NYPD, the men and women of my office have worked tirelessly to remove these dangerous weapons from our communities, prevent acts of gun violence whenever possible, and hold those who perpetrate these horrific and senseless crimes accountable in the courtroom,” said Staten Island District Attorney Michael E. McMahon. “With shooting incidents down nearly 20 percent across New York City this year, and an even steadier decrease in shooting victims here on Staten Island, law enforcement and our partners in government are finally seeing success in our battle against the scourge of gun violence. While there remains much work to do, the seizure and destruction of approximately 3,000 illegal firearms will undoubtedly make Staten Island and New York City as a whole safer. I commend our partners in government and the incredible men and women of the NYPD for their commitment to ridding our neighborhoods of these deadly weapons and look forward to continuing our work together to keep Staten Island the safest community of 500,000 residents in the country.”
“There are no gun manufacturers in New York City, yet illegal guns too often end up here and are used to wreak havoc on the lives of so many innocent New Yorkers,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. “I know the unimaginable pain of losing a close friend to gun violence, so I join with countless Queens residents in saying good riddance to these awful guns that have just been destroyed. My office will continue to work with our law enforcement, government, and community partners to close the iron pipeline, rid the streets of illegal weapons, and keep families safe from senseless gun violence.”
April 24, 2025 New York City Hall
Sources: WH.gov , MidtownTribune.com