Peel Regional Police say they seized 205 illegal guns in 2024, the highest total in a single year to date.
At a news conference Tuesday, Peel police officials and provincial government officials said that number means an illegal firearm is being seized in Peel Region approximately every 36 hours.
Peel Regional Police Chief Nishan Duraiappah said the 205 guns taken represents an increase of 60 since last year. He said that separately there were 147 shootings in Peel this year – a 70 per cent increase compared to 2023.
“These (guns) are the tools for violence and if we don’t mitigate them, we are going to see a continued deterioration not just in Peel but right across the GTA,” Duraiappah warned.
Police say of the 205 guns taken off the streets, 53 were seized by their Strategic and Tactical Enforcement Policing (STEP) team. That is more than double the number of firearms the team took off the streets in 2023 and more than triple the amount from 2022.