Cortlandt resident Nicholas Zito, age 22, was arrested on Tuesday, Aug. 15 at his home on Langeloth Drive, Westchester County Police announced.
According to the department, Zito's arrest was the result of a multi-agency investigation conducted with the help of the New York State Police, FBI Westchester Safe Streets Task Force, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, and the Putnam County Sheriff's Department.
Zito was taken into custody at his home just after 9 a.m., police said. Inside the residence, authorities allegedly found the following untraceable "ghost guns":
- Three loaded firearms lacking serial numbers;
- Four unfinished and nonserialized frames for firearms;
- 23 high-capacity ammunition magazines and ammunition.
According to police, Zito had been using a 3D printer to make the weapons, which are made without serial numbers. This makes them untraceable when used during a crime.
Zito was charged with the following after his arrest:
- Second-degree criminal possession of a weapon (for the loaded firearms);
- Numerous counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon (for having three or more firearms and the 23 ammo clips);
- Four counts of fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon (for the unfinished weapons.)
After his arrest, Zito was arraigned in court and remanded to Westchester County Jail in lieu of $15,000 cash bail or a $50,000 bond. He will appear in Cortlandt Town Court on Wednesday, Aug. 16.
Westchester County Public Safety Commissioner Terrance Raynor praised the investigation leading to Zito's arrest, saying, "I commend our Conditions Unit, the Real Time Crime Center, and our partners in this investigation. We are all committed to keeping illegal firearms of all kinds, including ghost guns, off the streets of our communities.”
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