SOUTH JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — Ghost guns are a growing problem for authorities around the country.
On Friday, the attorneys general for New Jersey and Pennsylvania reiterated their commitment to collaborate on this issue. Together, they announced criminal charges against a New Jersey man, accused of buying and bringing the untraceable weapons across state lines.
Officials say 23-year-old William Pillus, of Lincoln Park, New Jersey, transported 13 ghost gun kits and ammunition from Pennsylvania to New Jersey. He is charged with the unlawful possession of an assault gun, purchase of untraceable gun parts, possession of a gun without a serial number, and related offenses.
Pillus’ girlfriend, 21-year-old Makenna Sweeney, of Boonton, New Jersey, was also charged with possession of a large-capacity ammunition magazine.
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Investigators said Pillus bought more than a dozen gun kits from a gun show last month in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Officers tracked down his car and seized the weapons, as well as several more from his home, including:
• An AR-15-style rifle without a serial number
• AR-15 and related magazines
• 13 9mm handgun kits
• 13 Polymer 80 boxes, containing unserialized kits and frames
• And, handwritten instructions on handgun assembly
Investigators say Pillus learned how to build untraceable guns from YouTube videos.
New Jersey acting Attorney General Andrew Bruck said these guns are especially dangerous because they don’t have serial numbers and often fall through the cracks of the legal system.
“Perhaps, unsurprisingly, that is exactly why these weapons are popular for folks who otherwise cannot obtain a firearm legally,” he said.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law a few years ago to crack down on these weapons. Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro wants lawmakers in his state to declare war on ghost guns as well.
“They make every single one of our communities, from our biggest cities to our smaller towns, less safe, every day that goes by that our lawmakers don’t act,” he said.
So far this year, Shapiro said more than 400 ghost guns were pulled off the streets of Philadelphia alone, compared to just 18 in 2018. He said that’s proof that this problem will continue to get worse if nothing is done.