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Dentist police say had 'arsenal' of illegal guns pleads not guilty

A Massapequa dentist was arraigned on a grand jury indictment Thursday. Paul Carey is facing a slew of weapons charges after authorities said they found illegal guns in his home which houses his dental office. Newsday TV’s Cecilia Dowd reports. Credit: Newsday/Howard Schnapp; File Footage

A Massapequa dentist pleaded not guilty Thursday to an indictment on dozens of felony charges after authorities said they seized an arsenal of firearms in February that included untraceable “ghost guns” from the home where he also has his office.

A lawyer for Paul Carey, 62, called him a “peace-loving gun enthusiast” after his Nassau County Court arraignment.

“We hope that in the end the court will see that Dr. Carey didn’t intend to hurt anybody or even violate the law,” attorney John Carman added of a case he said would highlight “how complicated the gun laws are.”

Carey is facing up to 25 years in prison if convicted of first-degree criminal possession of a weapon, the top charge against him.

Nassau police previously said they found 30 guns in the basement of Carey’s Riviera Drive East home, where his dental office is on the first floor, after his now-former secretary called 911 on Feb. 16 after hearing him racking a rifle.

Acting State Supreme Court Justice Robert Schwartz kept Carey’s $100,000 bond in place Thursday and signed an order of protection that prohibits the dentist from contact with the ex-employee.

 Schwartz also warned Carey that if he got into “any more trouble” or was found “with any more guns,” he would revisit the bail issue. 

Law enforcement officials said 20 of the 30 guns they seized from the dentist’s home that day were illegal assault weapons. Sixteen of those 20 were “ghost guns,” or weapons that have no serial numbers and are illegal in New York, prosecutors said Thursday.

Some of the weapons that authorities recovered from Paul Carey's...

Some of the weapons that authorities recovered from Paul Carey's Massapequa home. Credit: Howard Schnapp

Carey “appeared to be agitated and intoxicated” before the secretary heard the racking sound coming from upstairs about 1:15 p.m., ran outside and summoned police, authorities said previously.

 The secretary reported during the call that Carey had a firearm at the office and she feared for her safety, prosecutors said Thursday. 

Carey told the secretary "Oh, I almost shot you," Nassau District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a Newsday interview after the dentist's arraignment.

Donnelly also said guns are making "a prolific comeback" locally. Authorities have seized approximately 201 guns in Nassau this year compared with approximately 144 in the same period last year, according to her office.

 "A peace-loving gun enthusiast doesn't make ghost guns," Donnelly added Thursday. "People are allowed to have guns. Get it legally. Get it with a serial number on it. Get your pistol permit." 

Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder previously said Carey was a licensed pistol holder until December 2012, when police took his license because he fired rounds in his backyard. Ryder said that revocation became permanent in mid-2016.

Carey assembled ghost guns in his basement with parts bought by mail, according to police.  They said they also confiscated seven silencers, 61 high-capacity magazines and 3,000 rounds of ammunition at his home on Feb. 16. 

Paul Carey is arrested in front of his Massapequa home...

Paul Carey is arrested in front of his Massapequa home on Feb. 16.

Carey briefly barricaded himself inside, but surrendered after his wife intervened, according to authorities. A felony complaint said she allowed police to search the home and Carey went to a local hospital for a “medical and mental evaluation."

Two days later, police got a call from a reported neighbor of Carey's who said a large package was outside that had been delivered to Carey's home, according to prosecutors.

They said police then recovered a package with a drill typically used to assemble ghost guns, along with items including a shotgun, ghost gun parts and rifle bayonets after getting search warrants for the package and Carey's home.

Carey also has pleaded not guilty in two misdemeanor drunken-driving cases, one from 2020 and another from 2021, that are pending against him.

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