Twenty-One Year Old Sentenced to 33 Months in Prison for Conspiring to Smuggle 12,000 Rounds of Ammunition into Mexico

     TUCSON, Ariz. – On Nov. 1, 2018, Francisco Guerra-Franco, 21, of Los Lunas, NM, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge James A. Soto to 33 months’ prison followed by three years’ supervision. Guerra-Franco had previously pleaded guilty to two charges: facilitation to smuggle goods from the United States and false statements to a federal agent.

     On Dec. 26, 2016, Guerra-Franco, who was 19 years old at the time, was pulled over in Nogales, Ariz. for a routine traffic stop.  Law enforcement located 12,000 rounds of ammunition in Guerra-Franco’s truck.  Further investigation revealed that Guerra-Franco had purchased the ammunition using money wired to his Wells Fargo Bank Account by a co-conspirator living in Mexico. Guerra-Franco intended to meet the co-conspirator in Nogales, Ariz., and the co-conspirator would then smuggle the ammunition into Mexico. Guerra-Franco also made multiple false statements to agents when confronted about three Colt M4 Carbine semi-automatic rifles he had previously acquired.

     The investigation in this case was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Nogales Police Department. The prosecution was handled by Micah Schmit, and Nathaniel Walters, Assistant U.S. Attorneys, District of Arizona, Tucson.

CASE NUMBER:                 CR-17-01585-JAS-EJM

RELEASE NUMBER:           2018-145_ Guerra-Franco

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