Millstone man held for alleged illegal weapons stash

A Millstone man suspected of piling up an arsenal including 36 machine guns, dozens of other weapons and bomb-making components remains behind bars without bail following his initial court appearance Tuesday.

John Lafergola, 52, is charged with knowingly possessing machine guns, according to the office of New Jersey U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman. He appeared in a Trenton federal courtroom.

Machine guns, defined as weapons that can automatically shoot more than one round on one squeeze of a trigger without manual reloading, are illegal in New Jersey.

The alleged stash came to light in October 2014, when township police were summoned to his home on a complaint that Lafergola had pointed a handgun at another member of the household.

According to authorities, police found 72 weapons, 36 of them classified as machine guns, and 13 of them operational as automatic weapons, cobbled together from separate components, along with dozens of firearms-related parts, tools, accessories and ammo.

Among the components, investigators said, were a 9mm Luger-caliber FBP M948-type firearm, 31 1/2 inches long, with no serial number or manufacturer's stamp; a 9mm Luger-caliber Suomi M31-type firearm, 34 inches long, with no manufacturer markings; and a 7.62x25mm caliber, M56-type firearm, 34 1/2 inches long, with no serial number or manufacturer's identification.

Investigators said Lafergola also had three short-barreled rifles, one with a defaced serial number, two silencers, non-smoke gunpowder, fuses, and other materials to build explosive devices.