NYC targeting gun maker in bid to keep illegal guns off the streets

New York City Police Department Commissioner Keechant Sewell acknowledged Wednesday that there are likely more illegal guns on the streets of the city than officials had realized.

Standing in front of a table full of ghost guns, Sewell and Mayor Eric Adams discussed how the number of ghost guns appears to be increasing in the five boroughs and adding to the increasing toll of violence at a news conference at police headquarters in Lower Manhattan. Then, they urged federal officials to revoke the firearms license of a Nevada company that manufacturers gun parts later assembled to make untraceable handguns and rifles.

"This is what we are up against right now," said Adams as he and police officials stood before a table of 131 ghost guns seized by officers in recent months.  With the help of a police forensic investigator, Adams displayed a particular assault-style weapon.

"You know how much fire this is in the wrong hands, you know what this can do to a school, what this can do to a house of worship?"  Adams asked rhetorically and he explained how parts for the weapons could be shipped to a home and later assembled.

To combat what Adams and police see as a spreading problem, the mayor called on federal officials to revoke the federal license of Polymer80, the manufacturer of gun parts.

"The bad guys are outpacing us, we are too slow to identify and correct the loopholes in violence," Adams said. "Online retailers supply the vast majority of ghost guns seized at crime scenes."

In a separate statement, Gov. Kathy Hochul also called on federal officials to revoke Polymer80's license.  She said taking illegal guns off the streets means saving lives.

"Gun violence is a public health and public safety crisis, and all levels of government must continue working together on aggressive action to crack down on the distribution and possession of dangerous weapons," Hochul said.

Officials at Polymer80 didn't return telephone calls and emails requesting comment.

In 2018, officials seized 17 ghost guns in New York City. In 2021, that figure rose to 354 guns, and as of May 9, the NYPD had confiscated 197 ghost guns, according to NYPD sources.

Gun control advocates said that in six years, untraceable ghost guns have become the fastest growing gun safety issue in the country.

NYPD Inspector Courtney Nilan said investigators have identified more than 100 online retailers selling gun parts mostly made by Polymer80.  It costs about $350 to produce gun parts, which when assembled, can be sold on the street for $1,500, officials said.

The NYPD has seized more than 13,000 regular firearms since 2019, NYPD statistics show.

 Asked about the sheer volume of guns seized, Sewell indicated it was larger than expected.

"We are seeing a significant amount of weapons, something that we probably didn't realize, with a department as large as it is," Sewell said.  "But we will never stop believing we can solve this problem."

By Anthony M. DeStefano

tony.destefano@newsday.com

Anthony M. DeStefano has been a reporter for Newsday since 1986 and covers law enforcement, criminal justice and legal affairs from its New York City offices.