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Queens Gun Buy-Back Nets 1K Firearms

Program paid $200 to anyone who turned in a gun

Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009 | Updated 3:30 PM EDT

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David Sutherland

More than 900 guns were taken off the streets in Queens.

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Queens Gun Buy-Back a Success

Nearly 1000 guns were taken off the street in Queens Tuesday.

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Queens Gun
Buy-Back a Success

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New York City officials say 919 guns were collected during a one-day buy-back program at six Queens churches.

     The program paid $200 to anyone who turned in a gun. A pellet or BB gun was worth $20. The officials say they paid a total of $158,880.

The weekend buy-back results were announced Tuesday by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly and Queens District Attorney Richard Brown.

Since last summer, similar programs in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Staten Island _ plus the Queens effort _ have netted more than 3,500 guns. More than half of them are handguns.

The goal is to reduce crime and tragic accidents.