Azaiah Nathaniel Zuniga-Valle pleaded guilty on July 17 to unlawful possession of a machinegun in connection with a March 22 shooting at a house party in Amarillo, according to United States Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould.
Zuniga-Valle, age 20, was indicted in April. Raybould said, “Zuniga-Valle showed a wanton disregard for public safety when he recklessly fired an illegally altered fully automatic weapon at a house he knew was filled with folks. These types of Glock switches turn ordinary firearms into machine guns. I’m grateful for the swift action of the Amarillo police together with our federal partners in investigating and prosecuting this case. I will continue to increase our federal presence in the Amarillo Division to crush violent crime. More to come, but the criminals in and around Amarillo should be worried. I’m coming for you.”
FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock said, “Illegally possessing a machinegun undermines the safety of our North Texas communities. This plea demonstrates the importance of partnerships in combatting violent crime. The FBI and our law enforcement partners will continue to work together to identify and apprehend violent criminals.”
According to plea documents, officers from the Amarillo Police Department responded on March 22 to reports of gunfire at a residence on South Mississippi Street following an incident where an individual with a rifle was asked by party hosts to leave; shortly after his departure, multiple bullets struck the house. Video evidence provided by another attendee depicted what appeared to be an auto sear device attached inside the rifle’s receiver, enabling it as a machinegun.
Further investigation identified Zuniga-Valle as having possessed the rifle at the party; surveillance footage captured rapid gunfire consistent with automatic weapons fire near where shots were reported. On March 24, Hereford Police arrested Zuniga-Valle after receiving information that he had pointed a gun at another individual and forced him into giving him transportation; officers recovered a Glock pistol under his car seat during arrest.
In statements made post-arrest, Zuniga-Valle admitted purchasing the rifle about one year earlier and trading for an attachment that converted it into a machinegun without obtaining required permits from federal authorities. He acknowledged firing approximately 30 rounds at the residence after leaving due to an altercation.
Zuniga-Valle remains in custody pending sentencing before U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk; no sentencing date has been set yet, but he faces up to ten years imprisonment if convicted.
The FBI, Amarillo Police Department, and Hereford Police Department conducted this investigation while Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey R. Haag is prosecuting this case.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas prosecutes federal crimes and manages civil litigation across approximately eight million residents over 96,000 square miles from facilities including Dallas, Fort Worth, Lubbock, Amarillo and Abilene branches; it employs around 100 assistant attorneys and staff as part of its mission within the U.S Department of Justice, according to its official website.