A Staten Island man who prosecutors say bankrolled a 3-D printed "ghost gun" factory has been convicted in Brooklyn federal court, ending a trial that pulled back the curtain on a homegrown pipeline of untraceable weapons.
On Thursday, a federal jury found 33-year-old Staten Island resident Brandon Nudelman guilty on firearms-trafficking and obstruction charges after a six-day trial. When he is sentenced, Nudelman faces up to 30 years in prison.
The jury convicted Nudelman on all three counts in a second superseding indictment after a six-day trial before U.S. District Judge Ann M. Donnelly. Prosecutors say the scheme ran from January through September 2023 and involved manufacturing and selling unserialized firearms and machine-gun conversion devices. Nudelman faces a maximum of 30 years at sentencing, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of New York.
"Brandon Nudelman was the money man behind a ghost gun factory printing lethal weapons in Staten Island," U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella said. Officials with the ATF and NYPD praised what they described as a tight partnership that, according to prosecutors, uncovered video of the defendants firing weapons and ultimately helped dismantle the operation.
How authorities say the ring worked
According to prosecutors, Nudelman and his co-conspirators ordered parts online, then used Polymer80 kits and 3-D printers to build privately made, unserialized firearms. They also allegedly produced small "auto sear" conversion devices that can turn a semiautomatic pistol into a weapon capable of fully automatic fire.
Investigators executed a search warrant on September 7, 2023 at a co-defendant's home, where they say they found multiple homemade firearms, conversion devices, 3-D printers and ammunition. Those allegations first surfaced publicly when the indictment was unsealed and detailed a sinister 3-D printed ghost gun plot.
Co-defendants and what's next
All three of Nudelman's co-defendants, Justin Nudelman, Ronnie Mershon and Michael Daddea, have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing, prosecutors said. Justin entered his plea in January, while Mershon and Daddea pleaded guilty in December.
The case, docketed as 23-CR-437(S-2), is being handled by the General Crimes Section of the Eastern District of New York. Trial attorneys on the file include Arun Bodapati and Samuel Rackear, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of New York.
Legal implications
Under federal law, conversion parts such as "Glock switches" and auto sears are treated as machine guns when they are designed to turn a firearm into one capable of fully automatic fire. Making, transferring or possessing them outside narrow federal channels carries steep penalties.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has repeatedly warned that trafficking in these parts is both illegal and dangerous. For more background, see the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Nudelman's sentencing date has not yet been set. Prosecutors say the conviction is one of several recent federal moves targeting the spread of privately made firearms. Local law enforcement officials argue the case shows how quickly small conversion parts and off-the-shelf kits can be turned into dangerous weapons, and prosecutors say they intend to keep pursuing similar trafficking networks.
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