TX - Police Seize "Cache Of Assault Weapons Presumed To Be Headed For Mexico"

[Kevlar]

Laredo police say they made one of their largest weapons seizures in years after pulling over a truck laden with brand new assault rifles, bayonets and ammunition that they believe was headed to Mexico.

The seizure Saturday afternoon came less then two weeks after Mexican President Felipe Calderon asked Congress to help stem the flow of guns from the U.S. into Mexico.

Acting on a tip from the Webb County Sheriff's Office, Laredo police stopped a vehicle containing 147 new, boxed assault rifles, 200 high-capacity magazines, 53 bayonets and 10,000 rounds of ammunition. One of the two men in the vehicle tried to flee, but was apprehended, said Laredo Police Investigator Joe Baeza.

Baeza said when authorities laid out the cache in a conference room of the federal building in Laredo Monday, it covered half the floor. He said it was the largest weapons seizure in a decade in the area around Laredo, which is 145 miles south of San Antonio along the U.S. border with Mexico.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are investigating the seizure, but Baeza said the presumption is the vehicle was heading to Mexico.

"Two Joe Blows aren't going to buy a bunch of weapons and it stops there," Baeza said. "We're pretty positive it was headed to Mexico." He declined to release the names of the two men in custody. Spokesmen for ICE and ATF would only say that the investigation was ongoing. The U.S. Attorney's Office did not immediately return a call for comment.....

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7033488.html.

 

[Larry Legend]

"pretty positive it was headed to Mexico"


For all they know it was a guy restocking his store. Hogwash, until more details are released.

 

[Admin]

This is what I read.

"Blah blah blah blah..."

 

[JohnFH]

How convient

 

[Admin]

They must have been Kel-Tecs

"Mexicans, taking the guns that Americans don't want..."

 

[scouter-rick]

Seems to me this is the exact type of thing with the perfect timing to bolster the bloomberg commmercial and support the anti's. In fact it almost couldn't be better if it was planned this way... oh wait.

 

[ScottS]

They must have been Kel-Tecs

"Mexicans, taking the guns that Americans don't want..."

Oh, now that right there is funny!

 

[CJKarl]

...and bayonets...that right there means they were up to no good.

 

[Zappa]

Only 200 magazines?
That's not even enough to supply a spare with every rifle.
Also, only 10K rounds of ammo?
Half the members here have more than that at home just for fun.

 

[HooVooLoo]

"...that they believe was headed to Mexico."

...the presumption is the vehicle was heading to Mexico."

"We're pretty positive it was headed to Mexico".

Proof positive, yep. Let's watch the spin doctors plug this one into the numbers of firearms confiscated in Mexico that came from the U.S.A.

*Le sigh*

 

[upStomp]

The timing of this just seems fishy, along with the odd quantities of items.

Is it possible to make a tinfoil hat out of that really thin stuff they use to wrap burritos?

 

[richc]

I didn't read anything in that article that indicated what was illegal in this seizure. What are the charges? What laws did they break?

It's a great sounding sound bite to the FUDD's, but I would be interested in the facts.

 

[yanici]

only 10K rounds of ammo?
Half the members here have more than that at home just for fun.

Shhhhhhhhh!

 

[glockstones]

I didn't read anything in that article that indicated what was illegal in this seizure. What are the charges? What laws did they break?

It's a great sounding sound bite to the FUDD's, but I would be interested in the facts.

I too would love to know what laws they where breaking here other than the obvious.........being a gun owner on a saturday afternoon. A box truck full of guns mags and ammo he could be replenishing his sho!!!!!!!!!WAIT THEY HAD BAYONETS! ok clearly criminal case closed.

 

[Ink]

I wonder if the vehicle they were in had an Obama sticker on it..........

 

[boston_007]

Acting on a tip from the Webb County Sheriff's Office, Laredo police stopped a vehicle containing 147 new, boxed assault rifles, 200 high-capacity magazines, 53 bayonets and 10,000 rounds of ammunition. One of the two men in the vehicle tried to flee, but was apprehended, said Laredo Police Investigator Joe Baeza.

My guess is that's all the money the Brady Center had left in its coffers .

 

[Kevlar]

Something isn't right here...

This happened Saturday, and they've already been arraigned, plead guilty and been sentenced?!?!

Two Mexican nationals caught in Texas with 147 assault rifles, 10,000 rounds of ammunition, high-capacity magazines and bayonets have started serving short federal sentences after pleading guilty to entering the U.S. illegally.

Federal prosecutors released the names of Damaso Alberto Rueda Cabrera and Arnulfo de la Cruz Sanchez on Thursday along with the unusual announcement that the men made their initial appearances in federal court, pleaded guilty and were sentenced to terms of 10 days and 45 days, respectively, all on Tuesday.

>snip<

Laredo police pulled over the two men Saturday afternoon. Police said it was the biggest weapons seizure in the area in years and that while the investigation was ongoing, it appeared clear the guns were destined for Mexico.

De la Cruz, 53, of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, waded across the Rio Grande into Laredo on May 28, according to court records.

Rueda, 20, of Reynosa, Mexico, was the driver and had been in the U.S. since illegally crossing the border Dec. 15, 2008, according to court records.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/06/0...al-immigrants-carrying-nearly-assault-rifles/.

 

[theGringo]

My first thought was that an NES group buy got waylayed.

 

[terraformer]

WTF!!!! They get 10 and 45 days meanwhile they are supposedly running guns!

 

[Coyote33]

How long did that guy in Manchester have to stay in jail again?

 

[pdm]

A May Surprise? Seems convenient.

 

[GSG]

This happened Saturday, and they've already been arraigned, plead guilty and been sentenced?!?!

Ron White could probably explain that one for you.

Other states are trying to abolish the death penalty. My state's putting in an express lane.

Justice is swift in TX.

 

[pdm]

Justice is swift in TX.

Yeah, but this is a federal case.

 

[MassMark]

I smell fish...

 

[Bill Katt]

Absolutely nothing in this whole scenario makes any sense whatsoever. I smell WAY more than fish here. WTF???

 

[cekim]

Absolutely nothing in this whole scenario makes any sense whatsoever. I smell WAY more than fish here. WTF???

Yeah, this one is definitely straining the reality meter...

 

[KBCraig]

147 new, boxed assault rifles, 200 high-capacity magazines, 53 bayonets and 10,000 rounds of ammunition.

So, since "assault rifle" is undefined, I'm going to assume it was a mix of 10/22s, Marlin 60s, etc. The bayonets were a combination of Swiss Army Knives and fillet knives headed for fishermen on Falcon Lake.

The "high-capacity magazines" were a mixture of FHM and Playboy.

 

[EC1]

Does not pass the smell test. Either more to follow, or some one's covert operation got blown.

 

[Garys]

The story came from AP, so right off the bat you know the slant it's going to get. It's awfully short on details and no picture. At least in the story linked. Usually if it's EBRs, they have a nice picture. Still in boxes? Makes me wonder if this isn't a totally legit shipment. They certainly weren't planning to drive them across the border, so either they hadn't figured that out yet or just hadn't prepped the stuff to smuggle.

Feds Sentence Two Illegal Immigrants for Carrying Nearly 150 Assault Rifles Into U.S.

McALLEN, Texas -- Two Mexican nationals caught in Texas with 147 assault rifles, 10,000 rounds of ammunition, high-capacity magazines and bayonets have started serving short federal sentences after pleading guilty to entering the U.S. illegally.

Federal prosecutors released the names of Damaso Alberto Rueda Cabrera and Arnulfo de la Cruz Sanchez on Thursday along with the unusual announcement that the men made their initial appearances in federal court, pleaded guilty and were sentenced to terms of 10 days and 45 days, respectively, all on Tuesday

 

[ShadeWPI]

1) If they're really Assault Rifles (selective fire, intermediate caliber firearms with a stock) they didn't get them from their local gunshop.

2) There's no such thing as a "high-capacity magazine" in Texas or under Federal law, so they couldn't have had 200 high capacity magazines.

3) They only plead guilty to entering the country illegally. That gives the Justice Department time to arrange the more serious charges without having to release them for not being prepared to arrain them.

At best, it's poor reporting. Most likely its a set-up, but since these guys were illegally in the US (not US citizens, prohibitted from purchasing firearms in the US legally anyway) this should drive a push for better imigration control and border monitoring, not changes to US gun laws.