FBI nabs 4 Ocean County men charged with trafficking in firearms, including ‘ghost guns’
TRENTON - Four Ocean County men were charged Monday with engaging in a criminal conspiracy to sell firearms — including “ghost guns” — on the black market at the Jersey Shore, said U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger.
James Hyres, 38, of Toms River; Dennis McMickle, 35, of Brick; James Opalenik, 51, of Ocean Gate; and Edward Trost III, 36, of Toms River, were each charged with conspiracy to traffic in firearms and trafficking in firearms, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey.
Additionally, Hyres and McMickle were each charged with two counts of possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon. McMickle and Opalenik were also charged with one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number, the statement said.
Hyres and Opalenik were arrested in Ocean County on Monday. Opalenik was to immediately appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Tonianne J. Bongiovanni in federal court in Trenton. Hyres is scheduled to have an initial appearance on Tuesday before the same judge. McMickle and Trost were already in custody in the Monmouth and Ocean county jails, respectively, on unrelated state criminal charges, all according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
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From April through May, Hyres, McMickle, Opalenik, and Trost were members of a gun trafficking conspiracy that operated in and around Ocean County, according to the complaint against them.
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During those two months, Hyres manufactured privately made firearms, also known as PMFs or “ghost guns,” for resale using various component parts, including firearm frames manufactured by Hyres using a 3D printer, the complaint states.
Hyres, assisted by McMickle and Trost, then sold the PMFs and other traditional firearms for profit to others, including a confidential FBI asset, the complaint alleges.
Opalenik, assisted by McMickle, sold a semi-automatic rifle to the FBI’s source as part of their firearms trafficking conspiracy. McMickle also sold the confidential source a 9-millimeter semi-automatic handgun in January, the statement said.
None of the defendants held a federal license to deal or manufacture firearms. Hyres, McMickle and Trost each have prior felony convictions and are prohibited from possessing a firearm under federal law.
The counts of conspiracy to traffic in firearms, trafficking in firearms, and possession of a firearm by a previously convicted felon each carry a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. The count of unlawfully possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The FBI’s Jersey Shore Safe Streets Task Force in Newark and Red Bank, under the direction of FBI Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy, led the operation leading to Monday’s arrests and charges.
The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Newark Field Division; the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office, and the Lakewood and Toms River police departments, all were involved in the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ian D. Brater of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s in Trenton is in charge of the prosecution.
Contact Asbury Park Press reporter Erik Larsen at elarsen@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: 4 Ocean County NJ men charged with trafficking in illegal firearms
