Nearly 270 firearms were obliterated during the Claremont Police Department’s annual gun destruction drive, it was announced Monday.
In total, 69 long guns and 199 handguns were cataloged, double-checked to make sure they weren’t stolen, then sent to the recycling yard to be melted down, according to Lt. Jason Walters.
Most of the guns were connected to a crime, but some came from Claremont residents who surrendered them voluntarily or because of a court order, Walters said.
“During the destruction process, the Claremont Police Department saw high-capacity, modified and illegal guns that should not be on the streets,” Walters said.
The Claremont Police Department’s Detective Bureau worked with the U.S. Department of Justice on the endeavor.