Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced June 29 the Office of Attorney General has seized two 3D printers and molds used to create homemade gun components from a Northampton County resident.

Kenneth Wilson, 38, of Danielsville, had been previously released on bail for charges of trafficking methamphetamines in September 2020.

Agents from the Office of Attorney General’s Bureau of Narcotics Investigations and Pennsylvania State Police Special Emergency Response Team executed a search warrant on Wilson’s home June 24.

While executing the search warrant, agents seized two 3D printers, three ghost gun frames, three firearms, a small amount of methamphetamines, $1,140 in cash and drug packaging equipment.

Wilson’s 3D printer is alleged to have been used to 3D print homemade firearms, which were previously unavailable to residents using an Internet Protocol address in Pennsylvania.

According to Shapiro, loopholes to produce homemade ghost guns, whether by building from an 80-percent receiver kit or using a 3D printer, are often exploited by criminals who would be unable to obtain a gun legally.

Due to Wilson’s felony convictions, he was unable to possess a firearm - homemade or otherwise.

“Kenneth Wilson was caught manufacturing untraceable firearms out of his home,” Shapiro said. “Once assembled, these fully functional firearms often become a tool for senseless violence.

“Ghost guns are quickly becoming the weapon of choice for criminals [who] take the lives of too many Pennsylvanians. My office is working overtime to target these gun traffickers and get illegal guns off our streets,” he added.

This seizure is the first time a 3D printer has been apprehended by the Office of Attorney General.

The investigation is ongoing. This case is being prosecuted by the Northampton County district attorney.