96 Guns Seized, 35 Indicted In NJ Weapons Trafficking Crackdown

NEW JERSEY — A "wave" of indictments which charge 81 defendants with illegal gun trafficking or possession has hit the Garden State, according to Attorney General Gurbir Grewal. Ten of those weapons include untraceable ghost guns, authorities said.

Grewal said 35 indictments have been secured in the last two months after a series of investigations on the flow of guns into and across the state, some dating back as far as 2018.

Investigators seized 96 illegal guns, more than 30 of which were brought across state lines from states like Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Florida, among others. Among the weapons were one machine gun, 16 assault rifles and 10 ghost guns, or weapons that aren't federally registered.

More than 50 illegal large capacity ammunition magazines were also seized.

The "strategic investigations" deployed by the Division of Criminal Justice and New Jersey State Police focus on "disrupting the supply-line of weapons trafficking into violent areas, arresting drug dealers and seizing existing weapons in those areas," the AG's Office said.

Five of the indictments charge defendants with illegally trafficking guns. The others charge possession of illegal weapons by other alleged criminals, including individuals charged with using guns in violent crimes, alleged drug dealers, an alleged human trafficker, and a fugitive charged with credit card fraud.

Thirty-four of the indictments stem from investigations conducted between January 2019 and February 2021, with most charging conduct in 2020 and 2021. One case dates to 2018.

"We are aggressively targeting those responsible for the proliferation of guns and gun violence in our communities, including gun traffickers, drug dealers, and other criminals who arm themselves with illegal weapons," said Grewal.

"Assault rifles have long been a weapon of choice for gangs and drug dealers, and more recently there has been an alarming increase in untraceable ghost guns, which often are seized by police after they have been used in a shooting. By focusing on illegal guns, working to shut down the iron pipeline of firearms from other states, and prosecuting offenders under New Jersey’s tough gun laws, we are taking guns and armed criminals off of the street—and undoubtedly saving lives."

Still, the state saw a rise in gun violence in 2020, even amid the coronavirus pandemic.

New Jersey State Police data — recently published by NJ.com — shows that 218 people died in New Jersey shootings in 2020, up 45 percent from 2019. An additional 1,052 were wounded in 2020 shootings, an increase of 25 percent from 2019.

According to the New Jersey Gun Stat report, published by the State Police, 60 people have been killed by guns in the first four months of 2021 alone, while 315 people have been shot.

Officials hope those numbers will fall as they continue to trace the flow of weapons into the state.

"By cracking down on gun traffickers, armed drug dealers, and others with illegal weapons, we are working to reduce the gun violence and drug dealing that are claiming far too many lives in New Jersey and are undermining the safety and security of our communities," said Division of Criminal Justice Director Veronica Allende.

An Overview Of The Indictments

Those indicted include New Jersey residents, residents of the metro areas just outside the Garden State, and individuals from as far away as Alabama.

Four people were indicted after a bust called "Operation Zombie," in which they "conspired to run a major Philadelphia-based gun trafficking ring that illegally trafficked guns and methamphetamine into Camden," the AG's Office said.

The defendants in that case include Robert "Zombie" Crosley III, and Matthew Zoba, both of Philadelphia. They are charged in connection with 22 illegal firearms seized during the investigation, as well as seven illegal large-capacity magazines.

Between March 2019 and January 2020, they allegedly sold 16 guns in the Camden area during the investigation, including a handgun linked to a shooting in Philadelphia in which no one was hit, as well as a semi-automatic rifle linked to the Oct. 20, 2019 murder of 2-year-old Nikolette Rivera, according to authorities.

Michael Maresca, 32, of Hasbrouck Heights, allegedly trafficked ghost guns in the area of Paterson.

He was indicted with two other men— Robert Moser, 49, of Depauw, Indiana, and Maken Cornell, 52, of Grove City, Ohio — for "allegedly conspiring to purchase assault rifle kits, ghost gun parts, and outlawed large-capacity magazines and have them shipped to New Jersey, where Maresca allegedly assembled the illegal guns and sold them," the AG's Office said.

Maresca allegedly sold two ghost guns to an undercover officer, including one that was equipped with an illegal 15-round magazine loaded with prohibited hollow-point bullets. Five ghost guns and two assault rifles were recovered during a 2020 investigation.

Click here for the full list of indictments.

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