The New Orleans Police Department has released its preliminary crime statistics for the period of June 29 through July 5, painting a sobering portrait of the cityscape marred by violent acts yet showing signs of certain crimes ebbing. In a report provided by NOPD News, notable arrests were made including Benjamin Camp, apprehended on a second-degree murder account, and Montel Lee, in connection to a fatal hit-and-run incident. The arrest of Camp on June 29 was tied to a homicide on Marigny Street the day prior, while Lee was caught by the NOPD's Violent Offender Warrant Squad last Wednesday, July 2 for his alleged involvement in a May hit-and-run on Interstate 10.
Despite these high-profile captures, police gun arrest records reveal a sharp downturn. NOPD has managed to only make 153 arrests for illegal possession of a firearm year to date, a precipitous 50-percent decline from the same period in 2024 where they made 309. The NOPD Analytics Unit attributes this decrease to the dept's continued strategic and targeted efforts to reduce gun violence in the city, as was quoted from the NOPD News report.
Conversely, the number of firearms seized in 2025 has also seen a significant drop. The NOPD's statistics show that 1,004 firearms have been seized in criminal investigations as of yesterday, July 7, which represents a 24-percent decrease in comparison to the 1,327 firearms that were seized during the same timeframe last year. This reduction in both gun arrests and seizures could signal a shift in criminal patterns, or possibly reflect changes in police enforcement strategies and community engagement efforts.
