With increased gun violence in Toledo this month, police Chief Mike Navarre said he is creating a new task force to specifically focus on getting guns off of the streets.

The call for officers has gone out department wide, seeking volunteers to work the task force, which will primarily be out in the late night and early morning hours when crime peaks, the chief said.

The number of officers that are out nightly will vary — the task force will be in place “as long as necessary,” but probably at least through the summer months, Chief Navarre said.

Since June 1, at least 24 people have been shot in Toledo; eight were shot over the weekend in separate incidents.

The department is also offering two reward programs, one that the chief said may be a first in the country.

Anyone with information on the shootings from the past weekend at West Bancroft Street and Sylvan Avenue and the shooting in the 400 block of Austin Street could be eligible for a $2,500 reward.

The department, for the first time, is offering a $1,000 reward for anyone with information that leads to an arrest and conviction of a person in Toledo who illegally possess a firearm.

Chief Navarre stressed the reward money is not coming from taxpayer dollars, but rather from the Law Enforcement Trust Fund, money that is seized during investigations or from car auctions.

Anyone with information on any of the weekend shootings should call Crime Stoppers at 419-255-1111 or the detective bureau at 419-245-3142.

First Published June 27, 2011, 6:01 p.m.