San Mateo Police Seize Unregistered AR-15

SAN MATEO, CA — San Mateo police confiscated an AR-15 short rifle, the department tweeted on Sunday.

During a traffic stop, an SMPD officer found an unregistered, unserialized loaded firearm containing 38 rounds of ammunition, SMPD said. The driver was arrested on numerous firearm charges.

Cities in California have been ramping up efforts to stop the spread of unregistered weapons, also known as ghost guns. Officials in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, as well as across the state, are reporting an “astronomical” rise in ghost guns, despite a statewide ban of sales of new unserialized weapons in 2018.

The City of San Mateo reported 16 ghost guns recovered in 2021, a 166% increase since 2019, according to The Almanac. In January, the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office seized 30 illegally held firearms in a joint operation.

In South San Francisco, Sgt. Sean Curmi told The Almanac that over a fourth of the 46 firearms recovered in 2021 were ghost guns.