Virginia Man Sentenced for Selling Ghost Guns in West Virginia

CLARKSBURG, WEST VIRGINIA – Brandon Michael Reckert, 30, of Purcellville, Virginia, was sentenced to 70 months for possessing and selling privately manufactured and unregistered firearms.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Reckert was advertising and selling privately manufactured firearms, also known as ghost guns, on social media. Reckert’s home and vehicle were searched, where officers found multiple firearms, firearms parts, ammunition., and tools believed to be used in the manufacturing of the ghost guns. 

Reckert was ordered to forfeit dozens of firearms, firearms parts, rounds of ammunition, and tools.

Reckert will serve three years of supervised release once released from prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Eleanor Hurney prosecuted the case on behalf of the government.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the West Virginia State Police; the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office; and the Loudon County, Virginia, Sheriff’s Office investigated.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.

Chief U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided.