Yet Another Ghost Gun Stockpile Found In Queens, DA Says

QUEENS, NY — Call it Queens ghost gun déjà vu.

For the second time this week, Queens authorities said they seized a ghost gun stockpile.

Lenold Caesar, 43, appeared for arraignment Wednesday on a 33-count complaint stemming from accusations he had a cache of illegal firearms in his Cambria Heights home, prosecutors said.

The case came just days after Queens prosecutors accused brothers Andrew and Angelos Hatziagelis ofhoarding homemade bombs and ghost guns, along with a handwritten "Hit List," in their family home.

"I have prioritized taking guns off the street and will continue fighting the growth in ghost gun trafficking, a deeply troubling trend that threatens to make an already pervasive gun violence problem much worse," Melinda Katz, district attorney for Queens, said in a statement after Caesar's arraignment.

"That is why this case is important and why my office is a leader in the fight against ghost guns."

So-called "ghost guns" are often-homemade firearms that don't have serial numbers, making them untraceable.

Queens has seen more ghost gun seizures — 351 firearms, in total — than any borough since 2021, prosecutors said.

A long-term probe found that Caesar purchased polymer-based unserialized firearm parts that can be used to make working ghost guns, authorities said.

A warrant search Tuesday at Caesar's 235th Street home uncovered the following, according to a list provided by Queens prosecutors:

• Five ghost gun pistols, three of which had assault weapon characteristics, such as detachable magazines coupled with threaded barrels
• Four silencers
• One short barrel rifle conversion kit
• Three rapid-fire modification devices, also known as “Glock Switches” or “Auto Sears,” capable of converting a semi-automatic pistol into a fully automatic machine gun
• Six lower receiver/grip modules
• Two slides
• One receiver
• Three barrels
• Two drills and other tools used to make ghost guns
• 12 ammunition-feeding devices

Caesar faces up to 15 years in prison, if convicted on the weapons charges he faces.