Police: West Roxbury man’s gunshot wound leads to discovery of five ghost guns
A West Roxbury man who brought himself to the VA Medical Center with a gunshot wound was arrested after police say they found five ghost guns in his home.
James Thelwell-Mullen, 29, was arraigned Friday in Boston Municipal Court on five counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, seven counts of possession of a high-capacity feeding device and one count each of discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building, unlawful possession of ammunition and possession of a Class A substance.
On Aug. 15, Thelwell-Mullen arrived at the VA Medical Center in West Roxbury with a gunshot wound to the hand. He told staff that his father accidentally shot him while cleaning a gun inside a car, according to police.
Thelwell-Mullen was taken to Brigham & Women’s Hospital for further treatment, where police say he was uncooperative with officers and claimed he could not remember what happened.
Officers searched Thelwell-Mullen’s home and saw blood stains on the floor of a bedroom and hallway, clothing with blood stains, an empty gun holster on a bed, a spent shell casing and a magazine. He does not possess a firearm license, according to police.
Police say they obtained a search warrant and searched the home again, finding five guns with no make or serial number. They also found seven large-capacity magazines – three capable of holding at least 10 rounds of ammunition, three capable of holding up to 30 rounds and one magazine with a capacity of 31 rounds of ammunition, according to police.
There was also loose ammunition and a bag containing a white powdery substance inside the home, furniture damaged by gunfire and a slug recovered from a trash can, police say.
“The firepower that this man had at his fingertips should horrify all of us,” Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said. “Our communities deserve better than the constant terror of knowing that illegal guns are in their communities, putting their lives and their loved ones at risk. This individual and others who possess stockpiles of illegal weapons and those who traffic these weapons into our communities will be held accountable.”
A judge imposed $25,000 bail on Thelwell-Mullen. He is expected to return to court Sept. 20.
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