A deputy mayor in New York is facing federal charges after police found unregistered firearms and fake federal badges allegedly tied to the official, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Tuesday.
Brian Downey, a Republican serving as deputy mayor of Airmont, was taken into custody last week for “purchasing a rifle suppression device over the internet,” according to a readout from the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office.
Authorities executed a search warrant on his home and found at least 13 firearms silencers and 16 “assault weapons,” the District Attorney’s Office said. The firearms were allegedly set on a rack in a room inside Downey’s house, according to the criminal complaint.
FBI INVESTIGATING VERMONT STATE TROOPERS FOR ALLEGED COUNTERFEIT VACCINE CARDS
Airmont Deputy Mayor Brian Downey faces additional weapons charges from federal prosecutors and Rockland DA, including unregistered weapons, fraudulent court officers’ badges. Federal judge set his bail at $250K. https://t.co/5nAdw9epyJ pic.twitter.com/0NpIDbsOVC
— Steve Lieberman (@LoHudLegal) September 4, 2021
Near the firearms, authorities uncovered a locked box, to which Downey claimed he did not have the combination, the complaint continued. Authorities forced the box open and discovered “numerous federal badges and credentials” under Downey’s name for several agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Justice Department’s Bureau of Prisons, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, authorities said.
“Also located within the lock box were Downey’s United States passport book, United States passport card, and his New York state commercial driver’s license,” according to the complaint.
It is not immediately clear what Downey intended to use the fabricated badges for, and a communications representative with the Village of Airmont told the Washington Examiner it is unclear whether Downey is seeking legal counsel.
Downey was charged with several felony counts of criminal possession of a weapon, the unsealed readout said. Rockland County District Attorney Tom Walsh said Thursday that the deputy mayor faces nearly a dozen state counts of criminal possession of a weapon in relation to the search warrant.
“Our community is without a doubt safer today than it was yesterday,” Walsh said.
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Downey was elected as deputy mayor of Airmont in 2019 and would be forced to vacate his seat if convicted.
