By Dari Kotzker
NJ Today
The Mercer County Gun Buyback program is taking place today and tomorrow at two Trenton locations. There was a steady flow of people coming in, and by lunchtime more than 600 weapons had already been collected. No ID is needed and no questions are asked when police officers collect the guns. Each one is worth up to $250, and to pay for the program, the attorney general’s office is supplying $100,000 in funds confiscated during criminal investigations and the Mercer County prosecutor’s office is providing $20,000 in forfeiture money.
“This is a priority for New Jersey, to do all we can to stem gun violence, taking all the steps we can so we’re working together, collaboratively to accomplish that goal. The guns will be destroyed, literally taken out of circulation so that we don’t have to worry about them in any event, so they can’t be used in any violent encounters,” says Attorney General Jeff Chiesa.
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Some of the guns turned in included sawed off shotguns, 9mm guns and long rifles. If the number of guns collected exceeds the money allocated to the funding, the attorney general’s office and the Trenton Police Department will work to find additional funds.
“We will find money through confiscated funds or some revenue source to make sure that no one goes back or no one is turned away with a weapon,” says Trenton Police Director Ralph Rivera, Jr.