In this 2018 file photo, law enforcement officials display seized illegal weapons in Los Angeles. ASSOCIATED PRESS
A city man who made an unfounded report of gunfire is facing felony charges himself after officers realized he owned an illegal assault rifle, according to city police.
Matthew Hull, 27, of 96 1/2 Lincoln Ave., called police around 4:20 a.m. Dec. 5 and reported he heard a possible gunshot during an argument his neighbors were having, said Lt. Michael Strangeway. Officers responded to Hull’s neighbors’ residence and spoke to the neighbors, who invited them in and allowed them to search their home, Strangeway said. Police did not find any gun during the search and went to Hull’s home to inform him, he said.
While police were talking with Hull at his residence’s door, an officer spotted an illegal assault rifle inside his home, Strangeway said in a Thursday interview. Strangeway explained the semiautomatic rifle with a detachable magazine the officer spotted was illegal for two reasons: it had a telescoping stock and a pistol grip.
Telescoping stocks can be used to more easily conceal the rifle, he said.
Near the rifle officers found a loaded magazine for the gun, as well as 62 rounds of ammunition for the assault weapon, Strangeway said.
The rifle was an AK-47 style rifle, he said.
Officers found an additional 30-round magazine at the home which is also illegal to possess in New York, Strangeway said. That magazine went to another assault rifle that was not located, he said.
While an illegal gun and ammunition were found at Hull’s home, there was no indication any gun had been fired at either his residence or his neighbors’, Strangeway said.
Hull was charged with two counts of felony, third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, arraigned in City Court and released to reappear at 9 a.m. Dec. 20.
