ST. GEORGE, Staten island (WABC) — New York City police on Tuesday showed off a huge cache of ghost guns they confiscated in Brooklyn.<\/p>\n
Law enforcement officials announced the arrest on Staten Island and said it’s a big step in getting the illegal weapons off the street, but it still highlights a major threat to public safety.<\/p>\n
Martin Streich is accused of manufacturing and selling eight ghost guns, including two assault weapons, over the course of three months.<\/p>\n
Police say one of the purchased firearms has since been connected to at least eight shootings throughout Jersey City.<\/p>\n
Streich, 21, was arrested last Wednesday on Staten Island, where he was found in possession of one loaded AR-style collapsible pistol and one unloaded ghost gun.<\/p>\n
Officials then conducted a search warrant in his apartment in Gravesend, Brooklyn, where law enforcement recovered “five high-capacity magazines, five unfinished frames, a flash bang grenade, one silencer, 385 rounds of ammunition and approximately 18 firearm switches, tools and components.”<\/p>\n
Streich has been indicted on 73 counts and faces “upwards of 25 years behind bars if convicted on the top count, which is criminal sale of a firearm in the first degree, and possibly eight and a half to 40 years in prison if sentenced consecutively.”<\/p>\n
When authorities issued their search warrant last week, authorities found what appeared to be an explosive device. It ended up being determined to be fireworks, but led to a big scene at Streich’s Brooklyn apartment last week.<\/p>\n
“Untraceable and highly dangerous, the sole purpose of these weapons is to evade law enforcement and bypass gun safety laws and regulations,” said Staten Island District Attorney Michael McMahon.<\/p>\n
The means and methods of selling and disturbing the guns is still under investigation, but officials believe a majority of the criminal activity happened on Staten Island.<\/p>\n
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