By WABC Staff
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BRONX, New York (WABC) – In an effort to keep illegal and untraceable Ghost Guns off the streets of New York, the Bronx District Attorney is advocating for major credit card companies to stop doing business with phantom gun dealers.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark shared a letter she sent this week to Mastercard and Visa, urging them to cut ties with ghost gun makers.
“We’re asking Mastercard and Visa to get involved, asking them ‘don’t let your cards be used for this,’ because what happens with these gun parts and parts, putting them together, people are dying .”
Yanely Henriquez wants the gunfire to stop. Shots killed her 16-year-old daughter Angellyh Yambo.
“I’m going to do everything I can to make sure people know who she was and why I’m doing this for her,” Henriquez said.
She was hit by a stray bullet on her way home from school last month. It was shot half a block away.
The bullet that came from a so-called “ghost gun”, an online-controlled firearm that arrives in pieces and is easily assembled into a lethal weapon.
“We’re talking about the iron pipeline and people are going to different states where they can buy guns easily or whatever,” Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said. “But here you get it right in your house. No serial number, not found, no background checks nothing. It is a problem. And it is dangerous. »
The Biden administration has already ordered ghost gun companies to require background checks and stamp their parts with serial numbers, but that doesn’t go into effect until August.
“So by then, how many people have to die,” Clark said.
“It’s smart and creative,” said gun control advocate Nick Suplina. “It fills the gap in time and gets us to the right answer faster.”
Yanely Henriquez applauded the prosecutor’s initiative.
“You have to do whatever you have to do,” she said. “So we can stop all these crimes from happening, you know? Not just my child, future children, you know?
Late Thursday afternoon, Mastercard released a statement in response to the prosecutor’s request:
“In relation to this topic, we note that we believe it is the responsibility of elected officials to enact meaningful policies to address the issue of gun violence, while it remains Mastercard’s role to ensure that that consumers are allowed to make lawful purchases on our network. Where laws prohibit the sale of firearm parts without a serial number, we strive to ensure that Mastercard products cannot be used to purchase them We will continue to engage with lawmakers, law enforcement, and others on important topics like this.
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