McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — A Mexican national and member of the Cartel Del Noreste has been sentenced to five years in prison for illegally possessing ammunition with the intention of smuggling it south of the border, U.S. Attorney Nicholas Ganjei said Tuesday.
Charbel Garza Macias, 20, was ordered by a federal judge in Laredo, Texas, to serve 63 months in prison on the charges. He is expected to face removal to Mexico after his sentence is over.
Macias pleaded guilty on Oct. 8, 2024, Ganjei said.
In handing down the sentence, U.S. District Judge Marina Garcia Marmolejo said Macias wanted to provide tools of war by supplying ammunition south of the border.
“This defendant’s goal was to get this ammunition to Mexico and, if he had succeeded, would have contributed to the cartels’ ongoing campaign of brutality,” Ganjei said. “Those who work to arm, supply, fund, or otherwise aid these organizations take notice: You are going to be found and prosecuted.”
Officials say Macias had made several bulk purchases of ammunition in Laredo. Law enforcement say they surveilled him driving a vehicle with large amounts of high-caliber ammunition in the trunk on July 16, 2024. A search of the stopped vehicle uncovered 4,800 rounds of .223/5.56 caliber ammunition, officials said.
Law enforcement say that at the time of his arrest, Macias admitted he was hired to purchase approximately 20,000 rounds of ammunition to be smuggled into Mexico. He claimed the ammunition was for the Cartel Del Noreste operating in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico.
“The conviction and sentence of this individual highlights the serious consequences of smuggling ammunition across international borders,” said Special Agent in Charge Craig Larrabee of Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Homeland Security Investigations.
Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.
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