Former Airmont Deputy Mayor Pleads Guilty to Multiple Felonies for Illegal Weapons Possession

District Attorney Thomas E. Walsh II announced that the defendant, Brian Downey plead guilty to six felony counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree, stemming from the discovery of these weapons during the execution of a search warrant upon his residence in Airmont, NY on September 2, 2021. The plea was entered before the Honorable Larry J. Schwartz today in the Rockland County Court. Sentencing proceedings are scheduled for June 27, 2023.

The defendant pled guilty to two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree pursuant to penal law section 265.02(7) for possessing two illegal assault weapons; to wit: a Colt Carbine semi-automatic rifle and an Aero Precision semi-automatic rifle.

The defendant pled guilty to two counts of Criminal possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree pursuant to penal law section 265.02 (2) for possessing two illegal silencers; to wit: a Surefire LLC, and an Advanced Aramet Coro M4-2000.

The defendant pled guilty to two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Third Degree pursuant to penal law section 265.02 (8) for possessing two illegal large capacity feeding devices; to wit: two Magpul magazines that have a capacity to hold more than ten rounds of ammunition.

The defendant faces two years incarceration in the Rockland County Jail for his convictions of the above listed crimes. This sentence will run concurrently to a plea of guilty entered on February 10, 2023, in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York for his plea of guilty to Possession of an Unregistered Firearm in violation of Title 26 of the United States Code, Sections 5845 (a) (4) and 5861 (d) for a federal offense committed on September 2, 2021, during the same search warrant execution upon his residence.

District Attorney Tom Walsh said, “Investigators from my office and many other law enforcement agencies were able to see this investigation through to a guilty plea. I commend them for dedication and hard work, striving to keep Rockland a safe community. Many thanks to the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Town of Ramapo Police Department, and the Rockland County Sheriff’s Department Bureau of Criminal Investigation.”