Nearly 150 guns collected during Durham 'Gun Buy Back' events

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- The Durham County Sheriff's Office held two gun buyback events Saturday.

The event was in partnership with Project Safe Neighborhoods. It's the third event since 2022, and the first this year. Officials said 147 guns were collected during the event.

Anyone who gave up their weapon received a gift card ranging from $100 to $200.

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Sheriff Clarence Birkhead said the main goal is public safety.

"The guns that we've collected in our first two events. That's 400 weapons that will not end up on our streets. And to me, that's making a difference," he said. "So we want to educate people about gun safety and proper storage and responsible gun ownership. Also, while we're doing these events and we're also giving out free gun locks. So this is a public safety initiative."

According to DCSO, 650 guns have been removed from the streets of Durham since last year.