Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah announced on Tuesday, Aug. 9, that four individuals who were arrested in June as a result of a multi-agency investigation into the trafficking of illegal firearms from Washington to Westchester between April and June have been charged.

 

In addition to the arrests, authorities seized 31 ghost guns, as well as two conventional firearms, that were allegedly assembled and purchased in Washington, D.C., before being transported to Yonkers for sale between April 28 and June 24.

 

“This case is just one example of my gun safety initiative in action: conducting proactive investigations to remove illegal weapons like ghost guns from our streets and prosecute gun traffickers,” Rocah said. “I’m grateful to the Yonkers Police Department and numerous state, local and federal law enforcement partners who are on the frontlines with us every day  in the fight against gun violence and gun trafficking to keep Westchester safe.”

 

The joint investigation, launched by the Yonkers Police Department’s narcotics unit, in partnership with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Group D43, the NYPD, the New York State Police, the FBI and the Violent Criminal Enterprise Bureau of the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, focused on the interstate trafficking of “ghost guns.” These are partially finished, untraceable and fully-functioning illegal firearms that can be easily assembled at home with parts purchased online and designed to evade certain gun laws.

 

As alleged in the charges, Jose Gregorio Olivo-Feliz, 27, of Yonkers, Pedro Junior Olivo-Feliz, 21, of Yonkers, and Netaly A. Pena-Camilo, 25, of Washington, D.C. conspired to transport firearms from Washington, D.C. between April 28 and June 24 for the purposes of selling them in Yonkers. Pena-Camilo was allegedly in possession of the firearms and responsible for transporting them across state lines to sell them in Westchester County.

 

Officials from the Westchester district attorney’s office said Jose Gregorio Olivo-Feliz, Pena-Camilo and Idanis Lora-Espinal were arraigned on Aug. 4, and Pedro Junior Olivo-Feliz was arraigned on Aug. 8 in Westchester County Court. The district attorney’s office requested that Jose Gregorio Olivo-Feliz and Pedro Junior Olivo-Feliz be held without bail, or in the alternative, on $500,000 cash bail.

 

The office also requested that Pena-Camilo be held without bail, or in the alternative on $1 million cash bail. Bail was set by various Westchester County judges as follows: Jose Gregorio Olivo-Feliz $50,000 cash bail, Pedro Junior Olivo-Feliz $200,000 cash bail, and Pena-Camilo $150,000 cash bail. Lora-Espinal is being held on $5,000 cash bail.

 

According to the prosecution, on June 24, Yonkers Police and the DEA arrested Jose Gregorio Olivo-Feliz, Pedro Junior Olivo-Feliz, and Lora-Espinal, 30, of Washington, D.C. On June 29, Pena-Camilo was apprehended in Washington, D.C. by members of the investigative team, with the assistance of the D.C. Metropolitan Police.

 

A Westchester County grand jury charged the defendants on the following felony offenses:

• Jose Gregorio Olivo-Feliz was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, two counts of criminal sale of a firearm in the first degree, criminal sale of a firearm in the second degree, seven counts of criminal sale of a firearm in the third degree, criminal possession of a firearm, criminal possession of a weapon in the first degree, 11 counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree.
• Pedro Junior Olivo-Feliz was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, criminal sale of a firearm in the first degree, criminal sale of a firearm in the second degree, three counts of criminal sale of a firearm in the third degree, 11 counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree.
• Pena-Camilo was charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree, two counts of criminal sale of a firearm in the first degree, criminal sale of a firearm in the second degree, six counts of criminal sale of a firearm in the third degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the first degree, 11 counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree.
• Lora-Espinal was charged with criminal possession of a weapon in the first degree.

 

The case is being heard before Judge George Fufidio in Westchester County Court and is being prosecuted by the Violent Criminal Enterprise Bureau of the trials and investigations division of the Westchester district attorney’s office. The defendants are due back in court on Oct. 27.

 

A person charges with a crime is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.

 

On Aug. 12, the Washington Post reported that D.C. prosecutors had won a case against ghost gun manufacturer, Polymer80, a large manufacturer of gun parts kits who had falsely advertised that the kits were legal in D.C.

 

As reported, part of New York City Mayor Eric Adam’s blueprint to end gun violence includes stopping the proliferation of ghost guns. Norwood News had previously reported on the sentencing of a Norwood man, Peter Rivera, 67, of Reservoir Place who had purchased the weapon parts online. A search warrant was executed during which investigators recovered six completed assault-style rifles, none with serial numbers, as well as firearm components capable of being assembled into at least two other assault-style rifles. Investigators also found numerous imitation pistols, unfinished receivers, and a work bench and tools for the construction of guns. Rivera pleaded guilty and got two years.

 

In May, Adams, NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell, and Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund called on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to revoke the federal firearms license of Polymer80. A statement from the Mayor’s Office read, “Ghost guns have been a growing contributor to gun violence in New York City and Polymer80 is, by far, the largest source of ghost guns used in crimes and recovered by law enforcement nationally.”

 

On May 11, Gov. Kathy Hochul issued a statement in support of Adams’ call, saying in part, “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.”

 

She continued, “To combat the rise of ghost guns, I took action in October to criminalize the sale of ghost guns and require gunsmiths to register firearms they assemble. I also established a nation-leading Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns, bringing together ten states, federal agencies, and local law enforcement agencies. The task force is having an immediate impact, taking hundreds of guns off the streets, and the State Police has specifically seized more than 50 ghost guns this year to date, working with local and interstate jurisdictions. I am grateful to all of the law enforcement partners who are working together on these vital efforts.”

 

On May 13, the national, non-partisan group, Prosecutors Against Gun Violence (PAGV), sent a letter to both Visa and Mastercard asking them to end their merchant relationships with online “ghost gun” kit sellers and to stop the use of their cards to purchase “ghost gun” parts online.

 

According to the Bronx District Attorney’s office, Mastercard and Visa have previously taken action to promote public safety by ending merchant relationships with extremist and white supremacist organizations, and with illegal websites such as Backpage.com, which facilitated sex trafficking.

 

Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark and Santa Barbara County District Attorney Joyce Dudley, co-chairs of PAGV, said in part at the time, “With the assistance of ‘Everytown for Gun Safety,‘ we wrote to Mastercard and Visa regarding what is arguably the most serious gun safety problem facing this country: ghost guns.”

 

Representatives from the Bronx District Attorney’s office said on April 11 that President Joe Biden announced a significant step to stem the tide of ghost guns. The U.S. Department of Justice created a then new rule which redefined firearms to include ghost gun kits purchased online and required manufacturers/distributors of these components to become federally licensed, perform background checks prior to sale, and put serial numbers on the parts.

 

However the rule was not set to take effect until August 2022 at the earliest. It was for this reason that PAGV asked Visa and Mastercard to take action to help keep “hundreds if not thousands of ghost guns from being built and used in crimes in the next three months.”

 

As also reported, during the president’s visit to New York City in early February, the National Ghost Gun Enforcement Initiative was announced. Its purpose is to train prosecutors and disseminate investigation and prosecution tools to help bring cases against those who use ghost guns to commit crimes. Biden said, in part, during his visit, “Mayor Adams, you say that gun violence is a sea fed by many rivers. Well, I put forward a plan to dam up some of those streams. You can count on me to be a partner in that effort.”