Two men have received federal prison sentences for their roles in a firearms trafficking conspiracy that moved hundreds of weapons from the United States into Mexico, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Esteban Rios Reyes, 35, a legal permanent resident of Silverhill, Alabama, and Alex Santos Lopez, 22, a U.S. citizen residing in Oaxaca, Mexico, were sentenced after pleading guilty earlier this year to conspiracy to traffic firearms and smuggling goods out of the country.
Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane ordered Lopez to serve 90 months and Reyes 87 months in federal prison. After his release, Lopez will be on supervised release for three years. Reyes could lose his legal status to reside in the United States due to his conviction. During sentencing hearings, the court heard evidence about how often the organization exported weapons and coordinated activities across several states prior to being apprehended. Judge Crane noted both men's leadership roles and efforts to hide their activities.
On September 6, 2023, authorities stopped Lopez as he attempted to leave the United States driving a truck with a utility trailer. An inspection uncovered 270 firearms—including assault rifles, shotguns, pistols and rifles—along with 251 magazines, nine sights and over 1,500 rounds of ammunition. Many items were disassembled and hidden behind a false wall or inside water heaters purchased by Reyes.
Investigators determined this was not the group’s first attempt at smuggling firearms into Mexico. Since 2022, members acquired guns at locations across Louisiana, Alabama, Oklahoma, North Carolina and Tennessee before storing them at stash houses in Texas for later transport across the border.
The operation resulted in arrests across multiple districts nationwide and led to the seizure of nearly 1,000 firearms intended for Mexico.
Other co-conspirators—Felipe Garcia (36) and Angel Carreno (25), both from Dallas; Jose Luis Pacheco (25), a U.S. citizen living in Guadalajara—had previously pleaded guilty and received sentences ranging from 54 to 57 months in federal prison.
Lopez and Reyes remain in custody pending transfer to facilities designated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation was conducted by agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Homeland Security Investigations; with assistance from Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee A. Fry prosecuted the case.
"This case was prosecuted under the new criminal provisions of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, enacted in June 2022," stated officials in announcing the outcome. "It is the first federal statute specifically designed to target the unlawful trafficking and straw-purchasing of firearms."
According to information provided by OCDETF on its Department of Justice webpage, OCDETF uses an intelligence-driven approach involving multiple agencies led by prosecutors to identify and dismantle major criminal organizations operating within or threatening U.S interests.
