A N.Y. Deputy Mayor Is Accused Of Amassing An Illegal Arsenal And Fake FBI IDs
By: Bill Chappell
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
10:53 AM ET
Bill Chappell
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A wall in a gun room in Airmont, N.Y., Deputy Mayor Brian Downey's house held a range of powerful weapons, many of which were not registered, authorities say.
Department of Homeland Security
The deputy mayor of Airmont, N.Y., has been arrested on multiple weapons charges after police discovered an arsenal of illegal guns in his house — including 16 assault weapons and 13 silencers, according to the district attorney's office. Investigators said they also found a stash of fake federal IDs, including FBI credentials.
Deputy Mayor Brian Downey, 47, now faces more than 30 state and federal criminal counts.
Department of Homeland Security agents recently alerted authorities in Rockland County, which includes Airmont, that Downey had bought an illegal rifle suppressor over the internet — information that led to a raid that uncovered a room full of guns and gun parts, the district attorney's office said.
"Our community is without a doubt safer today than it was yesterday," Rockland County District Attorney Tom Walsh said in a statement about Downey's arrest, noting the rise of gun violence around the United States.
Rifles were not registered — and some required special licenses, feds say
One of the most serious charges against Downey accuses him of possessing unregistered firearms — specifically, two items that require special licenses to possess: a short-barrel rifle and a sawed-off shotgun. The rifle is a version of the AR-15 with a barrel shorter than 16 inches, according to a federal complaint signed by a Homeland Security Investigations special agent. The shotgun has a barrel less than 18 inches long, the document said.
Downey told investigators that he believed he was allowed to have a rifle with an illegal barrel "because he was a peace officer," the complaint said. It added he was aware short-barreled rifles cannot be legally possessed without special authorization from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
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Rockland County, N.Y., District Attorney's Office
Investigators say they found fake IDs purportedly from the FBI and other agencies in Downey's house. A portion of the credentials are seen here.
Rockland County, N.Y., District Attorney's Office
Deputy mayor had multiple bogus federal IDs, authorities say
Investigators also found a lockbox, which they opened after Downey said he did not have the combination.
"Inside the lock box, I located numerous federal badges and credentials," Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent Daniel Suden said in the complaint. These included a Drug Enforcement Administration badge and badge holder; a U.S. marshals badge and holder; three FBI badges and badge holders; and three complete FBI credential sets, including two-part identification cards, with Downey's name and photo. Other credentials bore the imprints of the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Department of Justice.
All of the badges and credentials "are not authentic and not issued under the proper authority," Suden said.
In addition to those items, investigators also found Downey's name and image on several New York Court Officer badges and IDs, resulting in a state charge of possessing a forged instrument.
Rockland County, N.Y., District Attorney's Office
Downey's name and photo appear on what authorities say is a fake New York Court Officer badge.
Rockland County, N.Y., District Attorney's Office
There's no sign of a motive in court records
None of the court documents released so far by county and federal authorities suggest an explanation for why Downey allegedly amassed an illegal trove of guns and forged documents. A local newspaper, the Rockland/Westchester Journal News , describes the deputy mayor as "a Second Amendment advocate who has permitted handguns" and was elected in March 2019.
The investigation that led to Downey's arrest involved several agencies, from the Rockland County District Attorney's Office to the Department of Homeland Security and a U.S. Postal Service task force.
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Good one... Love Kenda.
He had to have a reason for all those firearms and fake IDs. I think they should start talking to his friends
duh, he's a republican. what more reason does he need to break laws meant for insignificant people.
what WAS I thinking?
Now, now, we only have reports from crazy progressive liberal MSM about his party affiliation,
and we know they cannot be trusted, lol. Within a month they will saying he's a KKK Grand Lizzard or something /s
Reminds me of a Law and Order episode. These guys from one township in upstate NY rob an armored car and kill one of the guards. These guys are the pillar of the community and they are all part of some militia that calls themselves The Sons of Liberty or something like that.
Anyway, they were stockpiling weapons and ammo for the coming revolution
I remember that episode very well. A lot of those 'militia men' to me are pure evil .
I confess that I threw his name on bing and had to read at least 4 different articles on this story to find his republican party affiliation named. I kind of figured he was (duh), but since it was your seed I wanted to be certain instead of risking one of my 12 EEEE's wedged into my mouth.
But I'm an LEO so it's ok to have illegal weapons and ID's.
"I'm a trumpster, the laws don't apply to us"
They’re going to love this guy in prison. You got a purty mouth.
He may get the horn and not the one his head.
Lol the Court Officer ID is so obviously fake, anyone looking at his picture would conclude he's definately not Active.
Ghost guns. Assembled by combining replacement parts purchased primarily on the internet.
Unregistered and "untraceable" with no serial numbers.
It's "a thing".
Men accused of selling 'ghost guns' to undercover DEA agent arrested in Lubbock (msn.com)
in texas, they probably would have gotten off with probation, had it not been for the drugs. oh wait, they both had spanish surnames... never mind. /s
Is there a Lubbock NM?
I think they were from NM, caught in TX?
Don't think so. I think there's only a Lubbock in TX.