Rise in ghost gun seizures across New York, country has officials concerned
FLORAL PARK, N.Y. — New York officials are voicing concerns about the rise in ghost gun seizures after an arrest on Long Island.
Ghost guns are firearms without a serial number and can made at home using a 3-D printer with tools and parts ordered online.
"The proliferation of ghost guns in this state and across our country is dangerous and disturbing," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said.
According to the NYPD, 382 ghost guns were recovered between Jan. 1 and Nov. 18 of this year, compared to 400 in all of 2023.
"NYPD Commissioner Tisch said that the suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was in possession of a ghost gun that may have been made by a 3-D printer," Donnelly said.
"The 3-D printer can make anything you want. So you just, you put it together and you press start, [like] one of those cooking machines at home. You just set it and forget it, and it prints everything for you," NYPD Det. Igor Pinkhasov said.
"Even a silencer?" CBS News New York's Jennifer McLogan asked.
"Yes," Pinkhasov said.
Floral Park man accused of making ghost guns in "makeshift workshop"
Parmbir Singh, 23, was arraigned Monday on multiple charges after Donnelly says investigators found a "makeshift workshop for the construction and assembly of ghost guns" inside his Floral Park home late last month.
Law enforcement task force members say they discovered untraceable weapons "capable of mass destruction."
Investigators claim loaded ghost gun pistols were "tucked away in trap doors" located in the defendant's bedroom and in attic shelving, and they say the ghost guns they found were being altered and enhanced to fire many magazines and clips without reloading.
"He's a nice kid. He doesn't bother us, you know," neighbor Niamig Khan said.
"We have the right to bear arms, but not in this manner," neighbor Nafiz Hussein said.
Investigators say in a secret trap, they found a sign reading, "I prefer my guns the way Biden prefers his voters: undocumented and untraceable."
Singh also allegedly etched vulgar messages on gun parts. He pled not guilty to nearly a dozen criminal charges and is being held on $1.25 million bond. He is due back in court on Jan. 15, 2025.
