Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, alongside Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New England, announced that a federal grand jury in New Haven has indicted Nicholas Kingsley on multiple firearm possession charges.
The indictment was issued on December 4, 2024. Kingsley appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson in Hartford and pleaded not guilty to the charges. He has been held since his arrest on related state charges on April 16, 2024.
Court documents reveal that Kingsley was arrested by Enfield Police during a traffic stop on August 16, 2024. He was found with three privately made firearms known as "ghost guns" and 45 rounds of ammunition. On April 18, while detained in state custody, HSI special agents searched his vehicle in Agawam and seized 14 fully assembled firearms, Glock machine gun conversion devices, and over 2,000 rounds of ammunition.
Kingsley's criminal history allegedly includes felony convictions for drug offenses, firearm violations, assault, and larceny. Federal law prohibits individuals with felony convictions from possessing firearms or ammunition that have traveled across state lines or international borders.
The indictment accuses Kingsley of unlawful possession of firearms by a felon and unlawful possession of ammunition by a felon—each carrying a maximum prison term of 15 years—and unlawful possession of a machine gun along with unlawful possession under the National Firearms Act—each carrying up to 10 years imprisonment.
U.S. Attorney Avery emphasized that an indictment is not evidence of guilt: "Charges are only allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."
The investigation involves HSI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Enfield Police Department, and Agawam Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Lembo is prosecuting the case.
This case falls under Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which aims to reduce gun violence through cooperation between law enforcement agencies and communities to enhance safety. The Justice Department bolstered PSN's violent crime reduction strategy in May 2021 focusing on community trust-building efforts.