Teens sent to federal prison for attempting to smuggle AK-47-style rifles into Mexico
Two southern Arizona teens were sentenced in federal court on June 21, and July 26, respectively, following an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations.
Manuel De Jesus Guzman, 19, was sentenced to 18 months in prison and Joshua Francisco Mendez, 19, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison after both pleaded guilty to smuggling goods from the United States. Both sentences will be followed by three years of supervised release.
Guzman and Mendez attempted to exit the United States and enter Mexico on June 7, 2022, through the pedestrian gate at the DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales. During a search at secondary inspection, Customs and Border Protection officers located four AK-47-style rifles taped to their bodies.
Guzman and Mendez had two Romarms WASR-10 rifles, one Century Arms VSKA rifle, and one Century Arms BFT rifle.
“Any time firearms can be taken out of the hands of criminals is a win for public safety,” said HSI Arizona Special Agent in Charge Scott Brown. “It’s equally disturbing that these two young defendants will now on be labeled as felons — they have learned the hard way that HSI is fully committed to investigating and ensuring the fullest law is applied to those seeking to smuggle weapons southbound. This illegal activity will not be tolerated.”
The firearms are prohibited from being exported from the United States into Mexico without a valid license. Neither Guzman nor Mendez had a valid license or any other lawful authority to export the firearms into Mexico.
