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New numbers show that gun sales are surging in Virginia

Virginia Firearms Transaction Center recorded 80,228 transactions in March

Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP

FILE - In this March 15, 2020, file photo, people wait in line to enter a gun store in Culver City, Calif. A federal judge is refusing to block Los Angeles officials from shutting down gun stores as nonessential businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. On Monday, April 6, 2020, the ruling the second time was that federal judges in California have declined to intervene in shutdown orders even as similar orders are being challenged nationwide. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu, File)

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RICHMOND, Va. - New numbers from the state of Virginia show that gun sales have begun to surge during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported Monday that the Virginia Firearms Transaction Center recorded 80,228 transactions in March.

That’s a 75% spike over the same month last year. And it is the highest total for any month on record since state police started tracking purchases in 1990.

The new numbers surpass the state’s previous record from December 2012. Experts said that spike was fueled by concerns about increased gun restrictions after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.

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New numbers show that gun sales are surging in Virginia

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