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NEW YORK CITY (WABC) — So-called “ghost guns” are becoming a growing problem for police in New York City.
They are being used in more crimes and being confiscated in more places.
On Monday, when police in Pennsylvania apprehended a man believed to be the suspect in the Midtown Manhattan deadly shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, officers say the 26-year-old Luigi Mangione had a ghost gun.
Officers in New York City started spotting the homemade firearms five years ago in 2019.
The parts can be bought online, they can be put together in a matter of minutes and unlike other guns, there’s no serial number. They are virtually untraceable.
Police don’t know yet if the gun used to fire the fatal shots last week was a ghost gun but they are working right now to find out if it was the same gun recovered on Monday.
“It may have been made on a 3D printer, the capability of firing a nine-millimeter round,” said NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny. “Obviously, that will come out during our ballistics testing.”
Ghost guns can be bought already put together, they can be printed out on a 3D printer and assembled, or gun kits can be purchased online.
“Some of the kits come with everything required to build it in a matter of 20, 30 minutes with very little tools,” said Daryl McCormick of the ATF.
The NYPD has recovered 150 ghost guns in 2020, that’s compared to 382 so far this year. That’s a 154% increase.
Eyewitness News went to a shooting range with the ATF to fire a regular licensed gun compared to a ghost gun. The firearms fired the same way, using the same bullets.
Police said they are now doing ballistic tests to see if the gun recovered in Pennsylvania matches bullets and shell casings left on the sidewalk outside the Midtown hotel.
Each gun leaves behind unique markings on bullets and shell casings.
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