NEW YORK (1010 WINS) – The NYPD arrested 22 people and seized $54,000 in illegal fireworks ahead of the Fourth of July, the department said Saturday.
The busts were part of three operations carried out in June and early July by the NYPD in collaboration with the NYC Sheriff's Office, FDNY Fire Marshall, Port Authority Police and state police from New York and New Jersey.
Police said six illegal firearms were also seized as part of the operations.
Nearly half of those arrested live in Brooklyn and five of them have a record of at least ten prior arrests, including two people with 42 and 33 prior arrests, respectively, police said. All of those arrested were men, most of them in their 20s and 30s.
The NYPD said its Intelligence Bureau worked with the other agencies to stop illegal fireworks coming into the city and to target locations where they were being stored.
Operation Roman Candle led to 15 arrests and the confiscation of roughly $22,000 worth of fireworks.
Cyber Intelligence Unit Controlled Buy investigated sales of illegal fireworks on Craigslist, leading to the arrest of a 32-year-old man in Brooklyn and the confiscation of roughly $15,000 in fireworks.
Field Intelligence Team Operations also led to six arrests and the confiscation of $7,800 in fireworks, as well as six illegal firearms, police said.
NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said in a statement that illegal fireworks "result in multiple serious injuries to adults and too often children, every summer in New York City" and create a "hazard of fire and explosion" when stored.
Last month, authorities announced they were cracking down on illegal fireworks after the city saw a 4,000% increase in fireworks complaints during the first two weeks of June 2020.
