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NRA Blasts NYPD's Decision to Destroy Confiscated Guns

By Trevor Kapp | October 26, 2016 3:30pm
 Police plan destroy this pile of nearly 2,000 guns, including a WWI-era machine gun.
Police plan destroy this pile of nearly 2,000 guns, including a WWI-era machine gun.
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DNAinfo/Trevor Kapp

ONE POLICE PLAZA — The National Rifle Association is up in arms over the NYPD’s decision to destroy nearly 2,500 recently seized guns.

After the department outlined plans to smelt and crush a pile of 2,421 firearms put on display at NYPD headquarters Wednesday, the power gun-rights advocacy group criticized police for not reselling them. 

“The destruction of such valuable tools is shortsighted at best,” the NRA said in a statement. “Firearms are just like any other confiscated asset and should be sold at auction to licensed dealers or law-abiding citizens.”

The confiscated guns  — including a WWI-era machine gun seized in Queens — are set to be destroyed at an undisclosed out-of-state location in the coming days, officials said.

“These guns will never again be used to hurt somebody or to threaten the quality of life of the good people of this city,” NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill said at the event.

The commissioner scoffed at the notion that the department put the weapons back on the street.

“Why on earth would we do that?” he asked. “We went through a lot of hard work to get these guns off the street.”