ANAHEIM – They ran out of gift cards. An Anaheim Police Department gun buyback program was so wildly successful that officers had to hand out $48,000 in IOUs to those who turned in weapons.

Police were set to give out 190 $100 gift cards to Kohl’s, Wal-Mart or Target for each weapon turned in Saturday, but the cards ran out in the first two hours of the event at La Palma Park.

The department is buying more cards, which it will distribute in the next 10 days, Anaheim police Sgt. Ryan Blackburn said.

“Protecting the lives of citizens and officers and getting guns off the street is much more valuable than $48,000,” Blackburn said.

The buyback netted a record 676 guns, compared with a total of 233 firearms collected over the past three years, he said.

Although the gift cards were a draw, many who turned in guns likely participated to dispose of unwanted weapons and prevent them from falling into the hands of criminals, Blackburn speculated.

“Crime doesn’t stop at the Orange County line,” he said. “Stolen guns can move from the north end of the county to the south end in a couple of days.”

On the other side of the issue, the California Rifle & Pistol Association had this to say:

Gun buybacks “have little impact on making neighborhoods safer,” according to David Matza, an association spokesman. “This is because the weapons that are turned in are usually not ones that would be used to commit a crime.

“While CRPA is dedicated to making our streets safer and commends the Anaheim Police Department for trying to do so, we do not believe in programs or laws that will only remove weapons from law-abiding citizens and do nothing to focus on actual crime.”

Based on previous buybacks, Anaheim police expected to collect as many as 150 guns Saturday.

Officers quickly realized that they were in for a busy day when at 7 a.m. a line of cars extended a half mile along La Palma Parkway.

Brian Askov, 32, drove from Carson to turn over a 12-gauge shotgun that belonged to his grandfather. “I didn’t need to keep it, and I didn’t want to sell it illegally,” he said.

Those who dropped off firearms drove through three checkpoints, where officers ensured that the guns were secured, collected them and issued gift cards or IOUs.

The weapons, which include rifles, shotguns, semi-automatic handguns and revolvers, are kept in an evidence warehouse at Anaheim police headquarters. Among them are several sniper rifles, sawed-off shotguns, SKS assault rifles, and an M1 Garand, used by U.S. troops in World War II.

Blackburn said he was particularly glad that several subcompact .22-, .25- and .380-caliber and 9 mm handguns were collected, because they are easy to conceal and are favorites of street gangs.

“Based on my experience in law enforcement, those are easily concealed and are the most concerning,” he said.

The guns will be cataloged by Anaheim police evidence technicians and their serial numbers will be checked to determine if they are stolen. Then the firearms will be shipped to the Orange County Crime Lab to find out if they were used to commit crimes. Eventually, the guns will be pulverized.

Anaheim police plan to hold another gun buyback in December.

“We hope the next event will be as successful as Saturday’s,” Blackburn said.