An arsenal of more than 300 guns, many of them illegal, has been seized from a Long Island home around the corner from a high school, and the homeowner was arrested, authorities said Thursday.

 

Jay Steiner, 66, was arrested in late January after an undercover Suffolk police officer visited his Centereach home.

 

Steiner has been charged with criminal possession of a weapon and is free on bail.

 

"Wow!" said one surprised neighbor. "That's a lot of guns. It's scary."

 

Police were acting on a tip from a gun owner who had taken his weapon to Steiner, said Suffolk District Attorney Thomas Spota.

 

"The guns were stored all throughout the house," said Spota, as he stood in front of a table filled with the seized weapons.

 

In all, 85 illegal handguns and 230 rifles and shotguns were found, as well as thousands of rounds of ammunition.

 

"He had more firepower than the detectives who arrested him," said Spota.

 

Investigators said Steiner had once held a federal gun license, permitting him to buy and sell weapons, but it expired in 2004.  

 

Steiner maintained a business card, prosecutors said, displaying that expired license number.

 

Several calls to Steiner's lawyer, William Eppig of West Islip, were not returned.

 

It's unclear what the Centereach man was doing with all the guns.

 

The guns are being examined to determine whether any have been stolen or used in crimes.