HANOVER, NY — Authorities say a western New York man is the first to be charged with violating the state’s new gun-control law.

Local media outlets report that state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman says 32-year-old Benjamin Wassell, of Silver Creek, was charged Thursday with felonies related to the sale of illegal weapons.

Schneiderman says Wassell twice sold weapons that are prohibited under the New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act, passed by the Legislature in mid-January. Prosecutors say the sales involved two semi-automatic rifles.