Brendan J. Lyons is reporting for the Times Union according to the state attorney general's office, 17 online ghost gun suppliers have stopped selling firearms and firearms components statewide, 10 months after being sent warning letters threatening the imposition of civil fines or criminal prosecution for violation of state gun laws. "Ghost guns are built, marketed, and sold for one reason and one reason alone — to evade detection of dangerous weapons," James said in a statement. "These companies were selling our state’s residents the components to build illegal assault weapons that would endanger each and every New Yorker." So-called ghost guns are sold 80 percent finished to avoid federal regulations that do not define them as firearms until they are fully built. The untraceable firearms include assault-style rifles and semiautomatic handguns. Police say they have increasingly been finding their way into the hands of criminals, or anyone with the minimal skills needed to assemble them. Thousands of kits used to build the guns are being sold every year nationwide. Ghost guns carry no serial numbers and are unregistered. Read the full story in the Times Union.