Toronto police chief, mayor set to announce gun buyback plan

Toronto’s mayor and police chief are set to announce a gun buyback program aimed at reducing the number of unwanted firearms in the city.

John Tory and Mark Saunders will make the announcement at Toronto police headquarters this morning.

Tory has repeatedly called for a handgun ban in the city, particularly in the wake of a mass shooting in the Greektown neighbourhood that left two people dead.

Toronto recorded a record number of homicides last year, along with a major surge in gun-related crimes that saw police seize an unusually high number of handguns from city streets.

Saunders said in December that officers had recovered more than 500 handguns — or 222 more than in 2017 — and the number of homicides caused by shootings had gone up by nearly 30 per cent.

Saunders has said the surge in gun violence is his highest concern moving into 2019.