Man Sold 20 Guns To Undercover Cop In Harlem: Prosecutors

EAST HARLEM, NY — An Atlanta man sold 25 guns and cocaine to undercover officers in New York City — including in East Harlem — as part of a weapons and drug pipeline stretching down to Georgia, authorities said.

Yamil Torres-Rincon, 24, was taken into custody on Nov. 12 after the fourth and final time he tried to make a gun sale, according to a release by the city's Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor.

The second of those sales took place in East Harlem on Sept. 19, just before midnight, near the corner of East 116th Street and Pleasant Avenue. Authorities say Torres-Rincon sold a single .357 caliber Taurus revolver, seven nine-millimeter Glock pistols and one .22 caliber Glock pistol with ammunition and magazines to an undercover officer.

The fourth and final sale happened in the same spot around 7:30 p.m. last Friday, when the undercover cop agreed to pay $19,500 for two assault weapons, nine handguns and ammunition, according to police. After Torres-Rincon handed over the weapons, he tried to flee, according to authorities, who finally caught him in West Harlem, near the corner of West 133rd Street and Old Broadway.

• Read More: 25 Guns Seized From Georgia-To-NYC Firearm Pipeline: Authorities

"Guns and drugs go hand in hand, and both lead to senseless deaths, said Bridget G. Brennan, the special narcotics prosecutor, in a statement. "Reducing the supply of illegal firearms on our streets is a top priority."

A three-month probe led to Torres-Rincon's arrest and the disruption of a Georgia-to-New York gun and drug pipeline, authorities said.

Torres-Rincon sold 25 guns, including five assault weapons, to an undercover officer at places scattered across Manhattan from Sept. 3 until his arrest, according to prosecutors.

He also sold cocaine to an undercover officer and a wiretap found he negotiated larger drug sales, authorities said.

All told, he charged nearly $43,000 for the first three gun sales, authorities.

But the fourth sale went badly, according to a release. Torres-Rincon tried to sell nine Glock pistols that an undercover officer recognized as air pistols.

Torres-Rincon tried to flee but DEA agents and NYPD officers arrested him, authorities said.

He appeared in court Nov. 13 for arraignment on drug- and gun-related felonies.

Patch reporters Matt Troutman and Gus Saltonstall contributed.