City controller says Philadelphia sheriff can't account for 185 missing guns

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A total of 185 firearms remain unaccounted for by the Philadelphia Sheriff's Office, the city controller says.

Of that number, 76 are service weapons including revolvers, semi-automatic handguns and a shotgun. Officers who retire with the sheriff's office are allowed to keep their service weapon in retirement.

That number is down from the 101 service weapons identified as missing in a report from November 2020.

Sheriff Rochelle Bilal says the number is much lower.

"Twenty are still missing, that means we have no records of it even being in a sheriff's office," says Bilal.

However, Acting Controller Charles Edacheril said his office was unable to find records to back up those claims.

The remainder of the missing weapons include 109 guns related to protection from abuse orders.

A judge can order the subject of a PFA to turn over their personal gun to the sheriff's office until the order is dismissed or expired, the controller noted.

Bilal says the dates on the missing weapons go all the way back to the late 70s. She says when she walked into the sheriff's office in January of 2020, it was a mess.

"We cannot answer inconsistencies that derive as a result of bad record keeping in the past," said Sheriff Bilal.

With her re-election up for vote less than seven weeks from now, Sheriff Bilal is questioning the timing of a report released by Controller Edacheril.

"Now you tell me, is it a political move?" she said.

As to why the sheriff's office hasn't reported any missing guns to the police department, Undersheriff Tariq El-Shabazz says, "They are asking her to be derelict in her duty. They are asking her to accuse people of taking something that we are not sure was ever taken."

You can read the report from the controller's office at controller.phila.gov.