NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A Georgia man was arrested for smuggling 25 guns as well as cocaine into New York City, prosecutors announced Monday.
Yamil Torres-Rincon, 24, was caught selling the weapons to undercover officers as part of a three-month-long investigation, with the sales taking place across Manhattan — from East Harlem to Chinatown, according to Bridget G. Brennan, the city's special narcotics prosecutor.
Torres-Rincon, of Atlanta, sold off 20 handguns and three assault weapons — as well as an unknown amount of cocaine — to undercover officers for $42,900, according to Brennan’s office. The weapons and drugs were allegedly sold off in three separate transactions with undercover officers.
During a fourth sale with an undercover officer near Pleasant Avenue and 116th Street in East Harlem, Torres-Rincon allegedly sold two AR-15 Palmetto assault weapons as well as nine air pistols that he misleadingly advertised as handguns, prosecutors said. He also allegedly kicked in a large cache of ammunition for a total price of $19,500.
When the officer realized the guns were fake, Torres-Rincon allegedly attempted to run, but he was apprehended near the corner of West 133rd Street and Old Broadway, according to Brennan’s office.
Investigators used undercover officers as well as wire-taps during the sting that lasted between Sept. 3 and Nov. 12, 2021.
“Gun violence is surging across our city. Guns and drugs go hand in hand, and both lead to senseless deaths. Reducing the supply of illegal firearms on our streets is a top priority,” Brennan said in a statement.
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea praised Brennan’s office and partners in the investigation.
“With too many illegal guns already on our streets, I commend our NYPD investigators, law enforcement partners, and the prosecutors in the city’s Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor for working together in this important case to ensure that these trafficked guns were interdicted before they could be used to carry out violence against New Yorkers,” Shea added.
Torres-Rincon faces three charges for the criminal sale of a firearm as well as other related offenses.
