Utica Police Take Another Illegal Handgun Off City Streets
Another illegal handgun has been taken off the streets, thanks to a partnership between Utica Police and the Oneida County Sheriff’s Office.
Utica Police says officers from the UPD and Oneida County Sheriff’s Deputies conduced a traffic stop of two men at about 7:30 Thursday night at the intersection of Mary and Milgate Streets.
As officers were interviewing them, one of the men began to punch the police car and then fled on foot.
During the pursuit, officers believed the man discarded something, and while back tracking, they found a loaded 9mm handgun.
Police say due to the fresh snow and a reading from a thermal imager, it was evident that the gun had just been discarded there.
It was determined that the weapon was a self-made "ghost gun."
Ghost guns are unserialized and untraceable firearms that can be bought online and assembled at home.
Police say the suspect was 16-years-old and due to Raise the Age bail reform, he was issued an appearance ticket to return to Oneida County Family Court at a later date.
The 16-year-old, who will not be identified due to his age.
The teen was charged with:
Criminal Possession of a Weapon 2nd
Criminal Possession of a Firearm
New York State Vehicle & Traffic Law violations
[EDITOR'S NOTE: This post is for informational purposes and is based largely on information received from the Utica Police Department. All suspects are innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. At the time of this posting no additional information is available.]
