A supporter of the far-right “Boogaloo” movement was sentenced to four years behind bars on Tuesday for making “ghost guns” at an East Village Airbnb.
Kurt Therkelsen, 40, pleaded guilty in December to third-degree criminal possession of a weapon after he was caught with two untraceable firearms made from parts purchased online, the office said. Manhattan District Attorney.
Therkelsen was taken away in handcuffs immediately after his conviction in Manhattan Supreme Court, wearing a dark parka over a hoodie that showed his bird tattoo on his neck.
He was arrested on December 15, 2020, after cops raided his First Avenue apartment and found the homemade .9mm pistols, 11 high capacity magazines and a number of gun parts – as well as a Kevlar bulletproof vest and a shirt that said “Kill the cops.”
Text messages uncovered during the investigation showed Therkelsen’s support for the “Boogaloo Boys,” a loosely organized anti-government and pro-gun extremist group, prosecutors said.
The working weapons had been constructed from metal and polymer components purchased through eBay and other online sellers in various states, investigators found.
It’s unclear what Therkelsen, who has a California address, according to public records, was doing in New York at the time.
He was renting the Airbnb from November 1, 2020 to early January 2021 and had mail addressed to his name inside, according to a criminal complaint.
Therkelsen, who prosecutors say has a rap sheet in the Golden State, apparently maintained that he did nothing wrong, telling 13th Precinct cops, “What am I charged with? I did not have full firearms,” court documents allege.
But in court on Tuesday, he said “yes” when Assistant District Attorney Eun-Ha Kim asked if he understood he would plead guilty in the case.
Therkelsen remained mostly mom for the rest of the hearing, telling Judge Felicia Mennin he had nothing else to say before she handed down the promised four-year prison sentence of Condition followed by two years of post-release monitoring.
District Attorney Alvin Bragg thanked the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and the NYPD for their work on the case “making sure this is stopped before these homemade weapons can injure or kill anyone.” whether it be”.
“The internet provides a simple workaround to important firearms tracing measures: with just a few clicks, you can purchase untraceable firearm components and have them delivered to your doorstep,” Bragg said in a statement.
“Addressing gun violence in our city is my top priority as district attorney and ending the flow of phantom guns is a critical piece of that puzzle.”
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