By The Epoch Times | Created at 2026-08-11 18:41:59 | Updated at 2026-08-11 19:12:15
54 minutes ago
A sign displaying "No firearms in Mexico" its outside a border entry point in Naco, Ariz., on March 5, 2025. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times
An illegal immigrant from Mexico has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges related to purchasing 91 firearms and 40,000 rounds of ammunition.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon announced on Aug. 10 that Samuel Rodrigo Melo Santos pleaded guilty to being an alien in possession of a firearm and making false statements in the acquisition of a firearm.
Authorities said Melo Santos illegally entered the United States through Arizona in May 2024 but was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol and deported to Mexico.
He later illegally re-entered at an unknown date and location.
Between May 2024 and July 2025, Melo Santos allegedly purchased 91 firearms for $56,448, along with 40,000 rounds of ammunition, for illegal resale, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said one of the firearms was later recovered in Mexico.
“This criminal illegal alien from Mexico pleaded guilty to buying more than 90 guns and 40,000 rounds of ammunition so he could illegally resell them,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in a statement.
“Once his sentence is complete, [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] will remove him from our country.”
Melo Santos was arrested by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) on Dec. 16, 2025, before being transferred to U.S. Marshals Service custody.
The investigation was led by ATF, with assistance from ICE Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Judith Harper is prosecuting the case.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, 2,227 seizures involving firearms and ammunition have occurred so far in 2026. The agency reported 2,997 such seizures in 2025 and 4,932 in 2024.
In 2026, CBP has intercepted 1,447 handguns and 688 explosives. In 2025, the agency took 2,487 handguns and 473 explosives, compared with 2,299 handguns and 1,816 explosives in 2024.
In February, ATF reported that since Jan. 20, 2025, it had seized 36,277 crime guns and more than 2.3 million rounds of ammunition from prohibited individuals, including gang members and suppliers of transnational criminal organizations.
More than 4,300 of the seized firearms were bound for Mexico for alleged use by violent drug cartels and gangs.
Nearly 650,000 rounds of ammunition were also bound for Mexico—an average of more than 1,600 rounds per day, according to ATF.
