ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — With a rise in gun violence in the City of Albany, police are working to get, what they say are, illegal guns off the street.

Albany Police tell News10 there is a 26 percent increase in the number of reported shots fired in the city so far in 2022, but they are also confiscating more guns than last year.

75 guns were confiscated this year, with the most recent taken on Sunday at the 400 block of Second and Quail streets.

Part of that increase stems from more calls from people in the area witnessing these shootings. It is because of these callers that police are able to respond.

“Given the description given by the caller, we can not only arrest that person but get illegal guns of our streets,” Steve Smith, Public Information Officer for the Albany Police Department, said.

Most of the guns taken by police are illegal guns. Although it is not clear how people are getting access to these guns, Smith said they are mostly used to end individual conflicts.

“They are the result of some sort of dispute or some sort of conflict that could have easily been resolved without resorting to gun violence,” Smith said.

Despite a rise in the number of reported shots fired, the number of people who have actually been shot is down. Smith said 32 people were shot since January 2022.

While this may seem like progress, there is still a lot of work to do.

“We need to find different outlets to work with our community partners, work with the department of recreation to find different outlets for these young men and women who, for whatever reason, are resorting to gun violence or picking up a gun to end their conflicts,” Smith said.