Greenwood man involved in massive NYC gun trafficking case

NEW YORK (WISH) — A Greenwood, Indiana, man was among five people indicted on charges of conspiracy and illegal gun sales, the New York attorney general announced Friday.

Malanjit Sidhu, 20, was indicted for obtaining, possessing, and transporting firearms from Indiana to Queens, New York, court documents say.

The New York attorney general noted Indiana’s “less restrictive gun laws” played a part in the gun crimes.

A 625-count indictment dated July 9 says the five people sold dozens of ghost guns, assault weapons, high-capacity magazines, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition in Queens. The New York attorney general’s office recovered 86 firearms, including 55 ghost guns and 25 assault weapons, and 90 magazines.

A new release issued Friday from the attorney general’s office said, “The individuals involved in the operation transported 3D-printed ghost guns assembled in Nassau County and serialized firearms purchased in Indiana into Queens, where they were stored and sold.”

The investigation began in late 2023 and focused on the activities of Satveer Saini, 20, of East Elmhurst, New York, and his associates that included Sidhu. Others indicted were Mateo Castro-Agudelo, 21, of Long Island City, New York; Hargeny Fernandez-Gonzalez, 20, of Richmond Hill, New York; and Adam Youssef Senhaji-Rivas, 20, of Astoria, New York.

The news release did not say whether the five people were in custody.

“Saini, Fernandez-Gonzalez, and Senhaji-Rivas paid over $27,000 to purchase firearms from Indiana, which has less restrictive gun laws than New York. Early in the investigation, Saini and Castro-Agudelo were driving from Indianapolis to Queens with weapons purchased in Indiana when they were stopped for speeding by the Ohio State Highway Patrol in Medina County, Ohio. The stop recovered nine unloaded serialized handguns from inside Saini’s rental car. From this point on, Fernandez-Gonzalez began paying Sidhu to drive weapons from Indianapolis to Queens,” the release said.

“Saini sold these firearms in various locations in Queens, including at the Louis C. Moser Playground in Jackson Heights on a weekday afternoon, and in the parking lot of the Queens Center Mall in Elmhurst,” the release added.

The release says investigation, which began in late 2023, included controlled firearms purchase operations, covert video surveillance, social media monitoring, and analysis of financial and telephone records. Castro-Agudelo had posted pictures of many of the guns and significant amounts of case on social media accounts, including on a public X (formerly Twitter) account.