NYPD COMMISSIONER TISCH ANNOUNCES REMOVAL OF OVER 3,000 GUNS FROM NEW YORK CITY STREETS IN 2026
August 11, 2026
Builds on NYPD’s Work to Reduce Gun Violence and Deliver Record-Low Murders, Shooting Incidents, and Shooting Victims in the First Seven Months of the Year
Announcement Comes on the Fifth Anniversary of the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, a Multi-Agency Gun Violence Task Force Hosted by the NYPD to Keep the Most Violent Gun Offenders off City Streets
New York, New York – Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch today announced that the NYPD has removed more than 3,000 guns off New York City streets since January. In total, the NYPD has seized 3,259 guns so far this year, with 915 seized in Brooklyn, 782 seized in the Bronx, 764 seized in Manhattan, 605 seized in Queens, and 193 seized on Staten Island. A total of 199 of these guns were ghost guns – unserialized and untraceable firearms that only exist to evade law enforcement and gun laws, often ending up in the hands of criminals. The NYPD’s work to remove guns off city streets and dismantle the most dangerous gangs has contributed to historic lows in shooting incidents, shooting victims, and murders in New York City for the first seven months of the year and in July.
Today’s announcement comes on the fifth anniversary of the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership (GVSP), a collaborative, multi-agency operation that brings together more than 30 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies to combat gun violence. The partnership is yet another tool used by the NYPD and its partners to keep guns off city streets by collaborating to hold the perpetrators of gun violence accountable.
“The NYPD has taken more than 3,000 guns off New York City streets so far this year, contributing to the fewest murders, shooting incidents, and shooting victims in recorded history,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. “This milestone is a direct result of our precision-policing strategy: putting officers where and when they are needed most, identifying the drivers of violence, and taking guns off our streets. I thank the brave NYPD officers who execute this work and our law enforcement partners, including the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, who help us build strong cases, hold criminals accountable, and keep our city safe.”
“The Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, led by the NYPD, together with every federal, state and local enforcement agency in New York City and beyond, is a national model partnership; a truly unprecedented ‘team of teams' that helped take more than 3,000 guns off the streets so far this year,” said New York/New Jersey High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Executive Director Chauncey Parker. “The GVSP team demonstrates every day what is possible when we work together — side-by-side — to achieve a common North Star and work together to keep the perpetrators of gun violence off our streets. This collaboration is strong and continues to get stronger. The GVSP serves as a promising model for new partnerships in government beyond public safety.”
"The violence in this city that endangers the lives of law-abiding men and women and their families is overwhelmingly gun violence,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Jamie McDonald. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York is committed to removing illegal guns off our streets to root out this violence, and we commend the NYPD on retrieving over 3,000 guns so far this year. And so, we are proud to belong to the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership and its commitment to ridding this city of all these illegal guns and the violence they are used to committing here. I congratulate all the stakeholders in GVSP on five years of work and look forward to many more years to come.”
“The partnership of federal agents and NYPD detectives sharing real-time information in conjunction with local and federal prosecutors, has been fine-tuned to identify the violent re-offenders and drivers of gun-related crime and hold them accountable for their depraved actions," said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella, Jr. "Together with the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, my office and our federal, state, and local partners have used that information to direct resources where they can have the greatest impact and the best chance of preventing further violence. As a result, the NYPD has taken over 3,000 guns off city streets, and, beyond any doubt, our communities have become much safer."
“I am proud to stand with Commissioner Jessica Tisch, the brave members of the NYPD, and our law enforcement partners in the fight to turn the tide against gun violence in every borough,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James. “Every gun removed from our streets is another life saved and tragedy avoided. My office will continue to work with the NYPD and community partners to make New York City a safer place for everyone, especially our children.”
“Every illegal gun off our streets can prevent a potential tragedy, and the removal of over 3,000 firearms reflects the progress we can make when law enforcement acts as one team,” said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. “In Manhattan, shootings are down 57% and homicides are down 65% since I took office and collaboration with the NYPD and our law enforcement partners, especially through the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, is crucial to this success. Through the partnership, we can share intelligence and coordinate resources, which allows us to hold the most significant drivers of gun violence accountable. That work, paired with our targeted community investments and support for victims and witnesses, is why we have seen a historic drop in homicides and shootings over the past several years.”
“We must continue our efforts to get illegal firearms off the street to prevent the senseless killing of innocent people,” said Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark. “Every illegal gun seized is a life saved and neighborhoods made more secure. The Gun Violence Strategies Partnership has proven to be an excellent crime-fighting initiative. I thank Commissioner Tisch for her leadership in the ongoing battle to rid our neighborhoods of these illegal guns. I also commend Bridget Brennan, Special Narcotics Prosecutor for the City of New York, and her staff for their collaboration with my office on matters involving the GVSP database. Further, I salute the brave men and women of the New York City Police Department along with our state and federal partners who work tirelessly on the streets every day to ensure that our communities are safe from gun violence.”
“Brooklyn is experiencing a public safety renaissance, with record-shattering declines in homicides and shootings, and no murders for almost a full month this summer,” said Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. “Taking over 3,000 illegal guns off city streets is an important component of this ongoing success, and I thank the NYPD for the hard and diligent work that keeps us all safe. These achievements are more than just numbers. They mean children playing in the park without fear, neighbors enjoying summer nights on stoops without worry, and businesses thriving with fewer risks and disruptions. We are committed to continue working together to keep this historic progress going.”
“Since the inception of the Gun Violence Strategies Partnership, Queens has seen a dramatic decrease in shooting activity across the borough,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. “Shootings in Queens are now at their lowest level in 30 years. It is thanks to collaborations such as this one with the NYPD, gun buybacks, and long-term investigations, that we can enhance public safety and celebrate the achievement of removing over 3,000 guns from our streets this year.”
“Public safety requires commitment, collaboration, and trusted partners. The Gun Violence Strategies Partnership embodies these ideals, and my office is proud to have participated in this daily multi-agency initiative dedicated to reducing gun violence for the past five years,” said Richmond County District Attorney Michael McMahon. “Due to our combined efforts, and those of New York’s Finest, tens of thousands of illegal firearms have been removed from our communities, including more than 3,000 guns taken off of New York City’s streets so far this year. Thanks to the heroic actions of our NYPD officers, RCDA’s dedicated efforts in the courtroom, and this unprecedented level of interagency collaboration, Staten Island has witnessed historic lows in violent crime in recent years. I commend Commissioner Tisch for her steady leadership, members of the GVSP and NYPD for their commitment to removing illegal guns from our streets, and the men and women of my office for ensuring that dangerous criminals face serious consequences in the courtroom.”
Driving Down Gun Violence
These focused efforts on identifying and stopping the drivers of gun crimes have contributed to historic lows in gun violence. Last week, the NYPD announced that the department delivered the fewest shooting incidents, shooting victims, and murders in recorded history for the first seven months of the year and in July. Year to date, there were 381 shooting incidents, beating the previous record of 412 set in 2025. There were 462 shooting victims, beating the previous record of 489 shooting victims set in 2025, and there were 149 murders, beating the previous record of 174 murders set in 2017. For the first seven months of the year, shooting incidents dropped 7.5% (381 vs. 412), shooting victims dropped 5.5% (462 vs. 489), and murders dropped 22.8% (149 vs. 193).
For the month of July, shooting incidents decreased 21.3% (59 vs. 75) and were down in every borough. This is a 75% drop compared to just six years ago — in July 2020 there were 243 shooting incidents in that month alone. The NYPD also delivered the fewest shooting incidents ever recorded for any Fourth of July holiday with nine shooting incidents between July 3 and July 5, surpassing the previous low of 10 incidents set in 2025.
In New York City’s public housing developments, the NYPD continues to deliver historic crime reductions, breaking the record for the fewest murders, shooting incidents, shooting victims, and robberies for the first seven months of the year. Murders were down 45% (11 vs. 20), shooting incidents were down 33.3% (54 vs. 81), and shooting victims were down 35.2% (59 vs. 91) year to date.
In addition, the NYPD’s laser focus on identifying, stopping, and holding accountable the perpetrators of gun violence has resulted in 25 gang-related takedowns in 2026.
Violence Reduction Zones
The NYPD utilizes data-driven strategies to drive down violent crime and shootings across the city and based on observed trends. The department launched its Summer Violence Reduction Plan on May 4, and as of August 10, major crime was down 24.8% (1,335 vs. 1,776), shooting incidents were down 39.3% (37 vs. 61), and shooting victims were down 32.1% (53 vs. 78) in the zones during deployment hours. The zones deploy up to 3,800 officers on nightly foot posts across 72 zones in 40 precincts, public housing, and the subway system.