Nicholas DeFelice, a 33-year-old Montville resident, has been sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford. This sentence will be followed by two years of supervised release for his role in operating an illegal firearms manufacturing business. The announcement came from Marc H. Silverman, the Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
According to court proceedings, DeFelice was involved in manufacturing and selling over 200 firearms without the necessary license beginning in 2013. His business, “DeFelice Defense,” distributed firearms to individual customers, licensed dealers, and on consignment at various commercial dealers across Connecticut. The investigation included an undercover operation where agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) successfully purchased a firearm manufactured by DeFelice.
A search of DeFelice's home on February 17, 2022, uncovered a range of illegal items, including two short-barrel rifles, 67 other firearms, a serial-numberless silencer, and more than 28 high-capacity magazines.
Following his arrest on July 12, 2023, DeFelice pleaded guilty to the charge of possessing unregistered National Firearms Act firearms on October 7, 2024. The ATF led the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathaniel J. Gentile prosecuted the case.