Two Mass. men arrested in separate cases of assembling 'ghost guns' at their homes

Two men are facing charges in separate incidents related to the making of ghost guns, which cannot traced to an owner, at homes in Burlington and Woburn, law enforcement officials said Tuesday.

Local and State Police have been conducting multiple investigations on the creation and distribution of these unregulated ghost guns, Middlesex District Attorney Marian T. Ryan and interim State Police Colonel John E. Mawn Jr. said in a joint statement.

Investigators also recovered parts of guns and the equipment used to make them, the statement said.

Sean O’Connor, 37, of Burlington, was arrested Feb. 9 after police found a loaded Glock-style ghost gun in his car during a traffic stop, the statement said. A search of his home found several completed pistols, the components of uncompleted handguns and AR-15-style rifles, a drill press and other tools for making “ghost guns.”

Vincent Johns, 32, of Woburn, was arrested Feb. 24 during a search of his home, the statement said. Police found a 3D printer actively printing a lower pistol frame, 3D-printed parts such as magazines and pistol frames, suspected counterfeit Xanax pills and binding agents for manufacturing pressed pills.

Massachusetts gun laws do not prohibit the manufacture or assembly of firearms without serial numbers, but legislation that would amend the law to include definitions of “assembly” and “manufacture” is pending, the statement said.

“We will continue to use every tool available to us ... to close the existing loopholes that allow those without a gun license to possess the tools to make ‘do-it-yourself’ firearms,” said Ryan.

Gun parts manufactured with 3D printers are risky to users, Ryan said, in addition to posing a threat to the public.

“Improper assembly or the use of plastic parts makes the guns likely to break apart or fire improperly upon use,” Ryan said, according to the statement.

O’Connor was charged with possessing a firearm without a license, improper storage of a firearm, carrying a loaded firearm without a license, the statement said, among other charges. He pleaded not guilty on all charges, was ordered committed to Middlesex Jail without bail. His next court date is March 29, court records show.

Johns was charged with possession of a firearm without a license and trafficking firearms, the statement said. He pleaded not guilty on all charges, was ordered committed to Middlesex Jail in lieu of $25,000 cash bail. He is next scheduled to appear in court March 20, court records show.