Florida man indicted for illegally shipping firearms, ghost guns to NY regions, including Brooklyn
Lawrence Destefano, of Orlando, faces 71 charges, accused of mailing 12 firearms, two ghost gun kits, 28 high-capacity magazines and over 1,400 rounds of ammunition to locations in Brooklyn, Queens and Nassau County.
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New York Attorney General Letitia James and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch announced the indictment of a Florida man for illegally shipping firearms, ghost guns and accessories to multiple New York regions, including Brooklyn.
Lawrence Destefano, of Orlando, faces 71 charges, accused of mailing 12 firearms, two ghost gun kits, 28 high-capacity magazines and over 1,400 rounds of ammunition to locations in Brooklyn, Queens and Nassau County.
Destefano shipped at least two additional packages to New York that the United States Postal Inspection Service intercepted, according to the indictment.
"Untraceable ghost guns put New Yorkers in danger and enable those who are barred from owning guns to obtain deadly weapons," said AG James. "Lawrence Destefano and his company Indie Guns are accused of flooding New York with illegal firearms, and we are determined to bring him to justice. I will not tolerate illegal and dangerous weapons in our communities, and I thank our partners in law enforcement for their work to shut down this ghost gun supplier."
According to the AG’s office, Destefano is the owner and operator of a gun retailer, Indie Guns. James separately sued Indie Guns in June 2022 for selling a large number of illegal firearms to New Yorkers and secured a $7.8 million judgment and court order against the company in March 2024.
The AG’s office says the indictment is a result of a joint investigation between the Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force, the NYPD, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations and the USPIS.
Destefano faces a slew of charges, including criminal sale of a firearm, conspiracy, transport of weapons and dangerous instruments and appliances and criminal sale of a frame or receiver. The AG’s office says that if convicted of criminal sale of a firearm, Destefano faces 25 years behind bars.
