EVERETT — Plastic for metal.
Police departments in Everett and Mukilteo are holding separate buyback events giving prepaid VISA gift cards in exchange for guns.
The Everett buyback is by appointment only from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday at the South Precinct, 1121 SE Everett Mall Way.
In the December 2022 buyback, the police department exchanged $25,000 in gift cards for 241 firearms. Everett police collected 123 handguns, 109 long guns and nine assault-style rifles.
The buyback this time is smaller, with reservations required. Participants will go inside the precinct.
“We have a limited amount of gift cards,” Everett Deputy Police Chief Jeraud Irving said. “We are looking at other ways to provide these community events, while reducing the amount of staff needed to work the larger events.”
Register at everettwa.gov/2925/Guns-for-Gift-Cards.
No reservation is needed at the Mukilteo buyback from 9 a.m. to noon Feb. 2 at the station, 10500 47th Place W. All firearms must be unloaded and secured in the trunk or in a locked area of a truck bed. Officers will open the trunk with the owner’s permission and remove the firearms.
The buybacks aim to reduce gun violence in the community and to reduce the likelihood of accidental injuries and suicides.
“This is just another way to be able to take guns out of people’s hands who don’t want them anymore, and to avoid them being stolen or used in a crime,” Irving said.
Participants must provide proof of Snohomish County residency to receive a gift card. Those not from the county can turn in firearms but will not receive a gift card. The police will not record names or do record checks.
In Everett, the gift card amount is $25 for inoperable firearms and ghostguns; $100 for rifles and shotguns; $200 for handguns; and $300 for assault-style rifles.
The Mukilteo buyback is $50 for rimfire rifles and single-shot shotguns; $100 for pump-action shotguns; $150 for handguns, centerfire rifles and semiautomatic shotguns. Qualifying participants are also entered into a raffle for the chance to win a $500 gift card.
The buyback is in partnership with the Children’s Wellness Coalition-Suicide Prevention Taskforce “You Are Not Alone” event Feb. 3 at the Rosehill Community Center.
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @reporterbrown.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
