Attorney General James and NYPD Commissioner Tisch Announce Indictment of Florida Man for Illegally Shipping Firearms and Ghost Guns to New York

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York City Police Department (NYPD) Commissioner Jessica Tisch today announced a 71-count indictment charging Lawrence Destefano, of Orlando, Florida with shipping firearms, ghost guns, and firearm parts and accessories to New York. An investigation led by the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) Organized Crime Task Force (OCTF) recovered approximately 12 firearms, two ghost gun kits, 28 high-capacity magazines, and over 1,400 rounds of ammunition, which were mailed to locations in Brooklyn, Queens, and Nassau County. Destefano is the owner and operator of the gun retailer Indie Guns, which Attorney General James separately sued in June 2022 for selling tens of thousands of illegal, unfinished firearm parts to New Yorkers that were assembled into untraceable handguns and assault-style weapons. In March 2024, Attorney General James secured a $7.8 million judgment and court order against Indie Guns prohibiting it from selling firearms in New York.

“Untraceable ghost guns put New Yorkers in danger and enable those who are barred from owning guns to obtain deadly weapons,” said Attorney General 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.”

“This case is a stark reminder of the threat that untraceable ghost guns pose to New Yorkers, and the great lengths traffickers will go to evade law enforcement,” said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. “Lawrence Destefano and his Indie Guns company showed a blatant disregard for public safety when they allegedly sold and deceptively shipped illegal firearms and components into our city. Now, because of the relentless work of NYPD investigators, this iron pipeline has been shut down and those responsible are being held accountable. I thank the Office of the Attorney General and its Organized Crime Task Force, as well our federal partners, for their strong collaboration in disrupting and dismantling gun trafficking networks that threaten our communities.”

“As alleged, Lawrence Destefano and his business, Indie Guns, have for years disregarded weapons laws that are vital to ensuring the safety of our communities both here in New York and nationwide,” said HSI New York Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel. “Ghost guns, trafficked firearms, and assault-style artillery pose a serious threat to the safety of every community — they are untraceable, easy to assemble, and can be deadly if they end up in the wrong hands. HSI New York, together with our law enforcement partners, is committed to utilizing every tool at our disposal to stop and disrupt the dangerous illicit weapons pipeline and, in turn, save lives."

“This defendant is alleged to have used the U.S. mail to traffic illegal firearms and firearm accessories, endangering the safety of our fellow citizens of New York,” said USPIS Inspector in Charge Ketty Larco-Ward of the New York Division. “The US Postal Inspection Service remains committed to aggressively pursuing and investigating anyone who seeks to use the U.S. mail to facilitate gun violence. I commend our partners in the NYPD, HSI, and the New York State Attorney General’s Office for their dedicated collaboration throughout this investigation.”

The takedown was the result of a joint investigation between OCTF, NYPD, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS). In January 2025, OAG began the joint criminal investigation into Destefano’s firearms trafficking operation that spanned Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau County, and the state of Florida. The investigation included controlled firearms purchase operations, covert video surveillance, social media monitoring, and analysis of financial and telephone records.

The investigation revealed that Destefano marketed ghost gun components through his Indie Guns website, and shipped ghost gun components, complete serialized firearms, high-capacity magazines, and ammunition to addresses inside and outside of New York. 

Destefano directed Indie Guns customers to use encrypted communication methods, such as Telegram Messenger, to discuss purchases and place orders in an effort to avoid detection from law enforcement. He also requested cash, money orders, and digital payments for the firearms and firearm parts to evade record keeping detection. Additionally, Destefano would often ship firearm components and firearm accessories separately, and he would circumvent shipping restrictions by hiding the true nature of the items shipped.

Between January and May 2025, Destefano sold approximately 12 serialized firearms, one ghost gun kit, numerous high-capacity magazines, and over 1,300 of rounds of ammunition to an undercover police officer. Destefano also shipped at least two additional packages to New York that were intercepted by USPIS. One package, which was shipped to an address in Nassau County, contained a complete ghost gun kit. Another package, which was shipped to Brooklyn, contained 100 rounds of 9-millimeter ammunition and a high-capacity magazine.

Destefano has been charged with one count of Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree, two counts of Criminal Sale of a Firearm in the First Degree, 39 counts of Criminal Sale of a Firearm in the Third Degree, 28 counts of Transport of Weapons and Dangerous Instruments and Appliances, and one count of Criminal Sale of a Frame or Receiver in the Second Degree. If convicted of the crime of Criminal Sale of a Firearm in the First Degree, a class B violent felony, Destefano faces a maximum of 25 years in prison.

The charges against the defendant are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.

The OAG would like to thank the USPIS, HSI, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Office of Monique H. Worrell, State Attorney, Ninth Judicial Circuit, and the Florida Highway Patrol’s Bureau of Criminal Investigations and Intelligence, for their valuable assistance and participation in this investigation.

The investigation was led by NYPD Detective Christopher DeGiorgio of the LaGuardia Airport Task Force, under the supervision of NYPD Sergeant Michael Becker, Lieutenant Mark Jablonski, and Captain Matt Gorman, under the overall supervision of Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny. 

For USPIS, the investigation was led by Investigator Gonzalo Gonzalez, under the supervision of Virginia Faughnan, and Inspector in Charge Ketty Larco-Ward. The USPIS is led by Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale.

For OAG, the investigation was led by OCTF Detectives Edward Coffey and Michael Dealmeida, under the supervision of OCTF Supervising Detective Bradford Miller, Assistant Chief Ismael Hernandez, and Deputy Chief Andrew Boss, with special assistance from the detective specialists from the OAG Special Operations Unit, led by Deputy Chief Sean Donovan. The Attorney General’s Investigations Division is led by Chief Oliver Pu-Folkes.

The case is being prosecuted by OCTF Assistant Deputy Attorney General Amanda Fix, under the supervision of Downstate OCTF Deputy Chief Lauren Abinanti with the assistance of OCTF Legal Support Analysts Alex DiGiacomo and Madeline Rosen. Nicole Keary is the Deputy Attorney General in Charge of OCTF. The Criminal Justice Division is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General José Maldonado. Both the Investigations Division and the Division for Criminal Justice are overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.