Michael Belgrove, of North Valley Stream, is one of the first defendants to be charged under NYS law on manufacturing of ghost guns

A North Valley Stream man was charged Wednesday with manufacturing Glock switches — devices used to modify handguns into machine guns — in his home, making him one of the first New Yorkers charged with the crime under a statute that closed a loophole in the state’s ghost gun laws.

Michael Belgrove, 21, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Nassau District Court in Hempstead to 15 counts, including manufacturing and possession of rapid-fire modification devices and four ghost gun frames — all but one charge for violations under the law.

He was released under the supervision of the county Department of Probation. Judge Michael Alpert ordered that he be restricted from owning or possessing a gun while his case is pending.

Belgrove could not be reached for comment, and no attorney was listed on a state court website.

According to the criminal complaint against him, officers with the Nassau County police, the NYPD and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives raided Belgrove’s Balfour Street one-story home at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday with a search warrant.

In his bedroom, they found four unfinished handguns, three homemade rapid-fire modification devices, a 3D printer and a bulletproof vest, according to the complaint.

In October 2021, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the Jose Webster Untraceable Firearms Act, which outlawed the possession and sale of such weapons and was named after a 16-year-old Bronx boy killed by a ghost gun.

Under the law, it became a crime to use a 3D printer to manufacture machine guns, ghost guns, silencers, components of assault weapons or high-capacity magazines, making it a D felony punishable by up to 7 years in prison.

"Ghost guns, modified machine guns and other homemade weapons are one of the fastest-growing safety threats to New Yorkers," bill sponsor State Sen. Zellnor Myrie (D-Brooklyn) said in a statement. "I'm grateful to our law enforcement partners in Nassau County for their work on this case."

Even if Belgrove avoids punishment for his at-home gunsmithing, he could be jailed for violating the terms of his plea agreement in Queens earlier this year.

In March, he was accused of stealing a woman’s black Acura sedan parked in front of her College Point home. The woman was able to alert police to the car’s location using a GPS tracking device linked to her phone, according to a criminal complaint.

NYPD officers caught up to the car under the Floral Park LIRR station around 3:30 a.m., where they found Belgrove sitting behind the wheel, court records show.

Police said that when they confronted him, he slipped the car into drive and tried to speed off, but he slammed into an unmarked police car and two parked cars, nearly striking an NYPD lieutenant.

Belgrove then jumped out of the car and tried to flee on foot, but he was captured by one of the responding officers, records show.

Department of Motor Vehicle records show his driver’s license has been suspended nine times at the time of his arrest, police said.

Belgrove pleaded down to petty larceny on July 27 under the agreement that he not reoffend for a year. His Sept. 1 arrest could land him a year in jail, according to the Queens District Attorney’s Office.

Nassau District Attorney Anne Donnelly said Belgrove was caught before he could refine his craft.

"This defendant allegedly sat in the quiet comfort of his home and attempted to make untraceable firearms, with several parts and printed components seized during our search," she said in a statement. "With enough practice, his efforts could have led to the manufacturing of completed guns and ‘do-it-yourself’ weapons making their way onto our streets."