Photo: ROBYN BECK / AFP / Getty Images
Authorities in New York City busted a gun manufacturing operation based out of a Harlem apartment that was also being used as a licensed daycare center.
When officers with the New York City Police Department raided the apartment, they found two 3D-printed firearms, one assault pistol that was still being assembled, and a 3D-printed lower receiver in an unlocked room. They also found a 3D printer, plastic filament, and 3D printing tools.
The police took 18-year-old Karon Coley into custody. He is facing multiple charges, including criminal possession of a weapon, endangering the welfare of a child, and manufacturing a gun. Two juveniles were also arrested, but their names were not released due to their age.
Police said that Coley used guides he found on the internet to make the guns.
Coley's mother, who runs the daycare center, was not arrested.
"When made well, ghost guns and 3-D printed firearms operate just like commercial firearms. In the hands of teenagers, they can inflict just as much violence," said Rebecca Weiner, the NYPD's deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism.
"You got an 18-year-old in his room. 3D printer. He is not making little robotic toys. He is making guns. That should be scary to everyone," New York Mayor Eric Adams said during a press conference.