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Metro

NYC schools see 28 percent spike in weapons seizures

By
Selim Algar and
Tina Moore
Published Oct. 27, 2021, 5:29 p.m. ET
An NYPD School Safety officer stands outside of Richard R. Green Middle School as middle schools reopen throughout the city, in the Bronx.
From July 1 to Oct. 24, a total of 787 weapons have been recovered inside or near city schools, the numbers show. Sipa USA via AP

City school weapons busts have shot up by 28 percent this school year compared to the same stretch during the last pre-COVID academic term, according to new NYPD numbers.

From July 1 to Oct. 24, a total of 787 weapons have been recovered inside or near city schools — including 8 firearms, the numbers show.

For that same stretch during the 2019-2020 academic year there were 612 weapons seizures — and only one gun confiscation, the data shows.

The three-month period for the 2018-2019 school year saw just two gun busts and 611 overall weapons recoveries, according to the NYPD.

“Weapons have absolutely no place in our schools, and our outstanding School Safety Agents work every day to stop dangerous items from entering our school and keep our schools safe,” said Department of Education spokesperson Nathaniel Styer. “We work in tight partnership with the NYPD and we are increasing scanning in priority communities to maintain a high level of safety.”

In addition to the eight guns, this year’s arsenal includes 364 knives, 99 boxcutters or razors, 84 Tasers, eight BB guns, and 224 weapons listed as “other” by the department.

The “other” weapons category, which includes pepper spray, brass knuckles, and blackjacks, has soared by 350 percent this year compared to 2019-2020 when the number was 52.

There were 86 “other” weapons retrieved in 2018-2019 during the comparable period.

Knife confiscations were 351 in 2018-2019 and 403 in 2019-2020, the NYPD said.

An NYPD school safety officer ushers a student in for a temperature check upon entering Sun Yat Sen M.S. 131 on February 25, 2021 in New York City.
Eight guns have been confiscated in city schools this year. 
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

Taser busts have also jumped sharply this year, going from just 12 in both 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 to 84 so far this term.

Boxcutter recoveries were down, going from 139 in 2019-2020 to 99 this year.

The day the Post requested weapons data, two students from Midwood High School in Brooklyn exchanged gunfire just outside their building.

One of the suspects was arrested with a loaded firearm after fleeing to a building across the street and the gun was not included in the total firearm tally.

The other suspect in that incident remains at large.

School safety sources said that pepper spray canisters and Tasers have become increasingly popular among students because they are easily portable and relatively inconspicuous.

One theory for the rise in kids bringing weapons to school is as a means of self defense, sources said.

The marked rise in school gun recoveries and building violence has shaken the Department of Education and led to calls for more metal detectors and scanners inside buildings.

Styer noted that the troubling trajectory has spurred the NYPD to dispatch Neighborhood Coordination Officers and Youth Coordination Officers to monitor arrival and dismissal at roughly 40 schools.