Police say Rick Mariano's gun collection was melted down along with other firearms the department periodically destroys. They say a clerical mix-up is to blame.
Mariano's family discovered the error recently when trying to claim the guns to sell them.
Police say Mariano's family asked that his four handguns, four rifles, and a shotgun be taken for safekeeping shortly after the councilman was indicted on federal corruption charges in 2005. The guns were melted down in 2008.
Mariano was convicted in 2006 of taking $28,000 in bribes and is serving a 6½-year sentence. His family could not be reached for comment.
