San Antonio, Texas – Two Mexican nationals have been sentenced to prison as part of a conspiracy to smuggle AR-15 parts out of the United States and into Mexico.

Jose Francisco Garcia-Cervantes was sentenced today to 57 months in prison. Ricardo Rodriguez-Sotelo was sentenced to 78 months in prison on October 24, 2024, as part of the same case.

According to court documents, both men participated in the illegal trafficking of firearm parts from the Western and Southern Districts of Texas to Mexico. Garcia-Cervantes acted as a smuggler for the operation and transported boxes of gun parts to Mexico. Rodriguez-Sotelo prepared gun parts to be smuggled across the border by repackaging them at a storage unit in Laredo, Texas, where they would be picked up for delivery by truck to Mexico.

Three co-defendants, Chandler Britain Bradford, Troy Vernon Erbe, and Jesus Guzman-Delgado are pending trial.

U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza of the Western District of Texas made the announcement: “Rodriguez-Sotelo and Garcia-Cervantes played significant roles in an operation that moved a vast number of gun parts from the United States to Mexico. We will continue to work diligently with law enforcement partners to combat weapons trafficking and the illegal flow of guns to Mexico.”

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, along with the Department of Homeland Security Investigations and Department of Commerce Export Enforcement Division investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney William F. Calve prosecuted the case.

Updated January 17, 2025