Two Alabama residents, Emilio Ramirez Cortes and his son Edgar Emilio Ramirez Diaz, have been charged with smuggling over 300 firearms, along with ammunition and magazines, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei for the Southern District of Texas.
Both men made their initial court appearances in Laredo and are being held in custody until a detention hearing scheduled for October 31. The charges include smuggling firearms, ammunition, magazines, and other accessories, as well as trafficking firearms.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi stated, “Disrupting the illegal flow of weapons into Mexico is a key part of our whole-of-government approach to dismantling the cartels. This significant seizure represents our commitment to protecting Americans from brutal cartel violence.”
Ganjei added, “Those that illegally traffic guns to Mexico empower cartels to terrorize the innocent. This seizure of an immense quantity of firearms illustrates the Southern District of Texas’s full-spectrum approach to fighting the cartels. We will attack every facet of their operations until they are wiped off the face of the earth.”
According to a criminal complaint, on October 23 two vehicles appeared to be traveling together as they approached the Juarez-Lincoln Port of Entry in Laredo. The complaint alleges that Ramirez Diaz was driving a Chevrolet Tahoe with Alabama plates while his father followed in a Chevrolet Silverado with Mexican plates; both vehicles were towing enclosed white box utility trailers.
Authorities reportedly discovered false walls inside both trailers containing more than 300 rifles and pistols, along with various types of ammunition and magazines. Court records indicate that the men were smuggling these items for payment and had done so multiple times previously.
The investigation was conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement - Homeland Security Investigations, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Customs and Border Protection. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon Scott Bowling is prosecuting the case.
This prosecution falls under Operation Take Back America—a nationwide Department of Justice initiative aimed at combating illegal immigration and eliminating cartels and transnational criminal organizations through coordinated efforts from multiple agencies including Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhoods.
A criminal complaint is only an accusation; defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
