By 5 Towns Central Staff

NEW YORK CITY, NY (August 12, 2026)

The NYPD has taken more than 3,200 illegal firearms off New York City streets so far this year, according to Commissioner Jessica Tisch, who highlighted the figure Tuesday as part of the department’s ongoing effort to reduce gun violence.

The department passed the 3,000-gun mark on July 27 and has since recovered more than 200 additional weapons. Tisch noted that the NYPD reached 2,000 gun seizures in early June, meaning hundreds more firearms have been removed from circulation in just over two months.

Tisch attributed the results to the department’s focus on “precision policing,” which targets individuals and locations believed to be driving violent crime rather than relying solely on broad enforcement strategies.

According to the commissioner, New York City recorded its lowest number of murders, shooting incidents and shooting victims in the first seven months of a year since the department began keeping records. Overall major crime has also declined by nearly 7% compared with the same period last year.

Public housing also recorded its safest first seven months on record, with murders, shootings, shooting victims and robberies all reaching historic lows.

Tisch said the department’s strategy is heavily focused on repeat offenders, noting that a relatively small group of individuals is responsible for a disproportionate amount of the city’s gun violence.

To identify and target those individuals, more than 30 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies participate in the NYPD’s Gun Violence Strategy Partnership. The group meets daily to exchange intelligence, examine violent-felony arrests and coordinate enforcement efforts against the people believed to be responsible for driving shootings.

The NYPD says the combination of gun seizures, intelligence sharing and targeted enforcement is helping drive the city’s continued decline in violent crime.

.@NYPDPC and law enforcement partners announce the NYPD has seized more than 3,000 guns so far in 2026. https://t.co/pQfOeNji4u

— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) August 11, 2026