Two Texas Men Sentenced for Selling Machine Guns Bound for Mexican Cartels

A federal judge in South Texas sentenced two men to federal prison for selling guns to an undercover investigator. The undercover agent told the men the money for the guns, including machine guns, came from Mexico.

U.S. District Court Judge Micaela Alvarez sentenced two South Texas men to federal prison for their roles in selling guns to a buyer they believed would be transporting the guns to Mexico. The two men pleaded guilty to the charges on November 25, 2019, according to information obtained from the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, Ryan Patrick.

The judge sentenced Martin Guerra, 44, to 50 months in federal prison and his co-conspirator Saul De La Garza, 46, to 78 months in federal prison, Patrick’s office said in a written statement. Both men will serve an additional 30 months of supervised release following their prison term.

Federal criminal complaints obtained by Breitbart Texas revealed the men, in June 2019, sold an AR-15 style rifle, two selector switches, and two Glock pistols to an undercover agent for shipment to Mexico in violation of the Arms Export Control Act (22 USC 2778).

“The men believed the weapons would ultimately be illicitly transported to Mexico,” federal prosecutors said in a written statement. “Through the course of the investigation, Guerra bragged that he would be able to provide as many weapons as desired. De La Garza claimed he would be able to transport firearms from Houston to the Rio Grande Valley and coordinated with Guerra to make the sale of the machine guns.”

Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives teamed up to investigate the case.

Guerra remains in federal custody pending a prison assignment while Garza is free on bond and will be ordered to voluntarily surrender some time in the future.

Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for the Breitbart Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.