New Jersey resident Kyle Arena arrested with huge cache of illegal guns, knives and explosives

A New Jersey man’s brazen Facebook posts led police this week to uncover a massive cache of illegal guns, knives and explosives hidden inside the suspect’s home in a quiet neighborhood in the suburbs.

Kyle Arena, 35, of Totowa, New Jersey, faces multiple firearms and weapons charges stemming from a Tuesday home raid that revealed rifles, handguns, Dozens of knives, ninja stars, brass knuckles, 129 fully loaded illegal high-capacity magazines, thousands of rounds of ammunition and even four explosives, Totowa police said.

An anonymous tipster alerted cops to Arena’s social media posts and alleged gun arsenal and investigators only had to search his Facebook page to find probable cause.

Arena made a habit of showing off his guns online and “posting questionable content in various Facebook groups,” according to authorities.

In one post, he pointed a gun at people as he drove by in his car. In other messages, he shared photos of illegal items such as silencers, police said.

In another photo, Arena can be seen brandishing a rifle in front of his square, black-rimmed glasses, pretending to aim at an invisible target.

The emailed information included screenshots of Arena’s Facebook posts to a group called “Meal Team 6.1 Mid-Tier Main Group,” according to authorities. This private group of gun enthusiasts has 14,500 members.

“Meal Team 6.1 Mid-Tier Main Group” has a number of rules posted on its homepage, including “DO NOT USE FB REPORT OPTIONS” or face removal. The rule encourages members to avoid Facebook’s content moderators, lest any intervention in the private group result in its total shutdown.

Thanks to the wealth of evidence from his social posts, Totowa police obtained a search and seizure warrant called an “Extreme Risk Temporary Protection Order” from a judge to search the Lincoln Avenue home where Arena lives with his parents.

Investigators discovered the massive arsenal of weapons hidden in a crawl space inside the home and bomb-sniffing dogs discovered four explosive devices, police said.

Nearby residents told ABC7 they couldn’t believe one of their neighbors was hoarding the stockpile of deadly weapons.

“I was in shock,” Ciro Abdondanza told the station. “I never imagined something of this magnitude would happen in Totowa.”

“I couldn’t believe it,” added Carmine Cifalvi. “It’s just crazy. Why is he creating his own army or something?

Officers seized all items and arrested Arena without incident. He is in custody of the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office and faces several charges related to illegal firearms. He is due to appear in court on Monday.

The suspect’s father, Félix Arena, aged 66, was also taken into custody during the search. He was charged with disturbing the peace, making terrorist threats and resisting arrest.