MIDDLETOWN, NJ — A former Middletown Police sergeant was sentenced to five years in New Jersey state prison for abusing his authority as a law enforcement officer, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago announced Tuesday.
David Ringkamp, previously of Union Beach, was sentenced to the prison term Friday. He was previously convicted of second-degree conspiracy to commit official misconduct, a crime he pleaded guilty to in March.
New York State Police started investigating Ringkamp in December 2021; they were conducting surveillance at a gun show in Pennsylvania when they observed 35-year-old Nicholas D'Ambrosio of Millstone, NJ purchasing several kits of "ghost guns," untraceable makeshift firearms assembled from individual parts.
People buy the kits to assemble the guns at home. "Ghost guns" are illegal in New Jersey, because they are unable to be traced.
New York State Police contacted New Jersey State Police after following D'Ambrosio to his vape shop, "JR Vapors," in Millstone. Police then observed Ringkamp and his former wife, 33-year-old Amanda Ringkamp (a/k/a Amanda Belfiore), arrive at the vape shop, and saw D'Ambrosio hide the firearm parts in Ringkamp's vehicle.
Upon police stopping the vehicle, Ringkamp identified himself as a sergeant with the Middletown Police Department. Further investigation revealed that Ringkamp had agreed to assist D'Ambrosio with removing the illegal firearm parts from the vape shop after D'Ambrosio realized the police were watching him.
A subsequent search of Ringkamp's vehicle turned up the ghost-gun kits, plus cocaine and dozens of methamphetamine pills. A search of JR Vapors revealed over 25 pounds of marijuana and marijuana edible products, a fully assembled ghost gun, and evidence that D'Ambrosio was illegally selling marijuana out of the store.
A search of Ringkamp's home several days later revealed additional illegal drugs, including cocaine and anabolic steroids. It was subsequently discovered that Ringkamp had reached out to the New Jersey State Police after D'Ambrosio told him the police were monitoring him, identified himself as a police officer and lied to get information about their investigation.
Ringkamp was also charged with using internal law enforcement databases to conduct searches on D'Ambrosio and other individuals on dozens of occasions over a three-year time period, in the absence of any legitimate policing purpose.
D'Ambrosio was sentenced in 2024 to eight years in state prison after pleading guilty to a second-degree drug charge, third-degree Possession of Ghost Gun Parts, fourth-degree Hindering Apprehension, a third-degree drug charge and second-degree Manufacturing a Ghost Gun.
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