EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — A 22-year-old man from Ciudad Juarez pleaded guilty in an El Paso federal court to conspiracy of trafficking firearms while residing in the U.S. illegally following prior deportation, according to the United States Attorney’s Office from the Western District of Texas.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Erick Arenas Pascual, 22, drove a co-defendant to a Federal Firearms License (FFL) in El Paso on Jan. 25, where the co-defendant purchased a handgun.
Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) arrested the two individuals as they left the FFL.
Agents then discovered a second handgun that was purchased recently with 100 rounds of ammunition in Pascual’s vehicle, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
An investigation revealed that Pascual planned to and had previously delivered firearms to individuals who would smuggle firearms into Mexico, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
It was further discovered, through Department of Homeland Security records, that Pascual was a non-U.S. citizen and had been previously removed through El Paso in August 2020.
Pascual pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to traffic firearms and one count of illegal re-entry.
He faces up to 15 years in prison for the conspiracy charge and up to two years in prison for the illegal re-entry charge.
The ATF is investigating the case.
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