Gas station manager among 10 suspects arrested in takedown of ghost guns, drug-trafficking networks in upstate NY

The manager of an upstate gas station allegedly sold ghost guns, assault rifles and fentanyl-laced counterfeit drugs from his home and business – and is the key player in a sweep that has netted nine other suspects, prosecutors said.

Authorities recovered 31 guns, hundreds of ammo rounds, about 5,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl with a street value of about $150,000, and about $55,000 in cash, New York Attorney General Letitia James said.

A probe launched in April 2022 revealed that guns and drugs were being sold out of a Valero gas station, where Muyad “Junior” Qader worked in LaGrangeville, as well as from his Poughkeepsie home, officials said.

Two separate indictments, one of which contained 154 felony counts, were unsealed by Dutchess County Court Judge Edward McLoughlin on Wednesday morning.

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Qader, a married father of two, was the only suspect to be indicted on all 154 counts in the indictment.

“During the investigation, the defendants and their co-conspirators frequently utilized coded and cryptic terminology in an attempt to disguise their illicit activities, such as referring to ghost guns as ‘ghosties,’ and the counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl as ‘erks,’ ‘urks,’ and ‘percs,’” a press release said.

Qader’s “main supplier of firearms was Jason Knapp, who assembled untraceable ghost guns for him and others to sell,” James said about the 43-year-old suspect from Verbank, New York.

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Knapp also supplied high-capacity magazines for Qader to sell, she alleged.

Other alleged suppliers included Joseph Silverman, 30, of Port St. Lucie, Florida, and Louis Gonzalez, 53, of LaGrangeville, New York, James added.

The rest of the suspects were identified as Isaiah Atkins, 27, Christopher Evans, 34, Curtis Holland, 32, Aaron Steppe, 29, Angel Williams, 24, all from Poughkeepsie, and Stephen Gary, 39, of LaGrangeville.

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The recovered guns include 14 AR-15-style assault rifles with no serial numbers, two “non-compliant AR-style rifles” with serial numbers and a defaced Glock 21 handgun, authorities said.

As part of the 154-count indictment, four defendants were charged with trafficking firearms and high-capacity magazines.

A separate 63-count drug-trafficking indictment contains felony charges against seven of the defendants for criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance, as well as conspiracy to commit those crimes.

“The individuals arrested today operated a dangerous network that trafficked untraceable ghost guns and flooded New York communities with fentanyl,” James said in a statement.

“Today’s takedowns send a clear message that we will not allow anyone to fuel the epidemics of gun violence and drug addiction with their illegal activities. This operation was made possible through my office’s partnerships with state and local law enforcement, and I thank the New York State Police and our other partners for their hard work to bring these individuals to justice. I will continue to use my office to protect the safety of all New Yorkers,” she added.

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