New York ( CNN ) -- More than 250 illegal guns have been seized by the New York City Police Department in the largest gun bust in the city 's history , Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Monday . The guns were smuggled into New York City from North Carolina and South Carolina between September 2012 and July 2013 through two separate trafficking operations , according to a news release from the city 's special narcotics prosecutor . Walter Walker , 29 , of Sanford , North Carolina , and Earl Campbell , 24 , of Rock Hill , South Carolina , are accused of hiding the firearms in luggage carried on buses that offer cheap fares and operate near Manhattan 's Chinatown neighborhood , authorities said . They sometimes transported as many as 14 firearms at a time , and the guns were usually sold within hours of arriving in the city , authorities said . It is not clear which bus companies they used to travel to and from New York . An undercover police officer met with Walker and Campbell separately more than 45 times and bought 254 guns , whose sales totaled nearly $ 160,000 . Wiretaps of cell phone conversations and text messages revealed co-conspirators who assisted them in obtaining the weapons for sale , authorities said in a statement . Five things to know about guns . `` Year after year , guns flow into our city from states that do n't have commonsense gun laws that keep guns out of the hands of criminals . North and South Carolina , for instance , still have weak laws that allow criminals and traffickers to easily buy guns , '' Bloomberg said . The 254 guns sold included high-capacity assault weapons , a fully automatic machine gun , and guns that are commonly used in violent crimes . Those included pistols and guns that can hold magazines with 30 or more rounds , according to Bloomberg . Walker and Campbell are among 19 people arrested in association with the case . All face numerous counts of conspiracy , criminal sale of a firearm , criminal possession of a weapon and other crimes . It was not clear who their defense attorneys were as of Monday evening . Walter and Campbell worked separately but used similar methods in their operations . Both employed a network of individuals in their respective hometowns who had access to black market guns and who were aware that the guns would be illegally resold in New York City . They also recruited associates in New York , who assisted them in conducting sales . The weapons sold fetched at least three times their original price , according to the police department . Bloomberg said Monday that the percentage of guns used in crimes that are brought in from out of state had increased from 85 to 90 % . Two of the top sources for gun crimes in New York are North and South Carolina , he said . `` It is impossible to know exactly how many victims might have suffered had officers not identified and investigated these gun traffickers , '' said Police Commissioner Ray Kelly . `` But thanks to the undercover officer in this case and the efforts of the NYPD Firearms Investigations Unit and prosecutors , instead of being used in crimes these guns are now out of commission . '' Of the 19 people charged , seven have been arraigned in Manhattan Superior Court . Another nine are currently in custody in North Carolina . Three were already in prison on unrelated charges . New York authorities worked with police departments in Sanford , North Carolina , and Rock Hill , South Carolina . States tighten , loosen gun laws after Newtown .
More than 250 illegal guns seized in bust , New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg says . Two men smuggled guns into New York City in separate operations , officials say . 17 others arrested in schemes that began in North Carolina and South Carolina , officials say . High-capacity weapons among the undercover purchases , which totaled $ 160,000 , officials say .