CLEVELAND — There is enough of a concern about fake or replica guns that one police chief in Northeast Ohio wants to start tracking them.
We've seen three cases involving them just this month. But one expert says fake guns are becoming more prevalent, just like their authentic counterparts.
University Circle Police say they took a replica Glock and a real extended magazine off of a 17-year-old during an attempted stolen car case on April 8.
In that case, a 911 call brought police to the Centric parking garage on Circle Drive.
"They triggered the alarm. I think they're stealing the car," the caller said.
Body camera video shows officers chasing down three teens and a young adult.
"Get on the ground, you've got nowhere to go get on the ground," one officer said.
Police Chief Thomas Wetzel says one suspect, who's 17, had the fake gun.
"Like a replica Glock, totally plastic, but he actually had a real extended magazine in it," Wetzel said.
He says the replica wasn't used in the attempted car theft, but it would have been very concerning if it had been.
"Anyone looking at that would instantly think that is a weapon it's almost impossible to make any distinction with that," Wetzel said.
One week earlier, there was a much different call to police, this time in Akron, for someone pointing a gun at homes.
Body camera footage released by the City of Akron shows Officer Ryan Westlake officer shoot 15-year-old Tavion Koonce-Williams in the hand immediately after he drove up to the scene and saw the teen had what was later determined to be a fake gun.
RELATED: Body camera footage shows Akron officer shoot teen who had fake gun
The police union stands by the officer. The teen's family wants the officer fired.
"He's a kid, he got a toy from a toy store," family attorney Imokhai Okolo said.
Just days ago, Lorain Police confiscated a toy gun brought to a middle school.
"I think this sort of toy gun looking like a real gun is sort of catching up to these other trends sort of going along with the real gun proliferation," Professor Daniel Flannery said.
Flannery researches youth violence prevention at Case Western Reserve University.
"And they will tell you mostly that they're carrying them for protection because they don't feel safe," Flannery said.
Flannery says that kids and young adults have become desensitized.
"Clearly the level of exposure, the immediacy of exposure, the intensity of exposure everywhere all the time makes kids and young adults feel this is just the way of the world," Flannery said.
When we spoke with Wetzel, he held up an orange toy revolver.
"This is very clearly a toy, there's no question about this," Wetzel said.
Last year, University Circle police confiscated 34 real guns.
"That's almost three guns a month," Wetzel said.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives tells News 5 Investigators they don't keep stats on fake guns.
We asked Wetzel if he might start tracking them.
"Actually after this conversation, I think we do need to do that. I think for informational purposes I think it's important for us to give an overall perspective on the risks that we're taking," Wetzel said.
The chief says the teens in the attempted car theft case, two of whom are 14 years old, were released to their parents.
Police say the adult has been indicted.
The case is under review for possible charges against the teens.
Flannery says that if we continue to see fake guns on the streets, it may be time to rethink how they're made.
There are toy guns with orange tips, but those can be covered up.
Flannery says that parents should discuss their expectations of their teens and what they buy for them.
