Mexican national receives seven-year federal sentence for moving 36 San Antonio-area firearms into Mexico
Federal case tied San Antonio-area gun purchases to cross-border smuggling route through Eagle Pass
A 42-year-old Mexican national was sentenced on March 9, 2026, to seven years in federal prison after prosecutors said he orchestrated the purchase and smuggling of dozens of firearms obtained in the San Antonio area and transported them into Mexico.
In federal court in Del Rio, Martin Edgar Garza Pacheco, of Melchor Muzquiz, Coahuila, received an 84-month sentence for conspiracy to traffic firearms. The case centered on a scheme in which firearms were acquired at multiple retail stores in the San Antonio area, then moved across the U.S.-Mexico border by vehicle, authorities said in court filings.
How investigators said the trafficking operation worked
Investigators said Garza Pacheco relied on two U.S.-based co-conspirators to purchase a total of 36 firearms. Prosecutors described the purchases as occurring at “various retail stores” in the San Antonio area, a pattern that can draw attention when repeated transactions appear connected to a single downstream recipient.
After the firearms were bought, authorities said Garza Pacheco repeatedly traveled from Mexico into Texas through the Eagle Pass Port of Entry, went on to San Antonio, and later concealed the weapons in his vehicle for the return trip to Mexico. He was arrested at the Eagle Pass Port of Entry on April 22, 2023, following an investigation into firearms trafficking from the United States into Mexico.
- Defendant: Martin Edgar Garza Pacheco, 42
- Charge: conspiracy to traffic firearms
- Firearms attributed to the scheme: 36
- Route described by investigators: Mexico → Eagle Pass → San Antonio → Mexico
Plea and related sentences for co-conspirators
Garza Pacheco pleaded guilty on Aug. 21, 2023. Chief U.S. District Judge Alia Moses presided over the case. The two co-conspirators identified in court records were sentenced separately: Victor Ulysses Ybarra-Daniels received 48 months in federal prison on Oct. 8, while Shiddartha Salinas Avila received 42 months on Nov. 3, 2025.
The case involved firearms purchased in the San Antonio area and later smuggled in a vehicle across the border, federal prosecutors said.
Agencies involved and broader enforcement context
The investigation involved the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, ICE Homeland Security Investigations, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Federal prosecutors also framed the case as part of “Operation Take Back America,” a Justice Department initiative described as focusing on immigration-related enforcement and targeting cartels and transnational criminal organizations.
The prosecution was handled by assistant U.S. attorneys in the Western District of Texas. Court records released with the sentencing did not detail whether any of the firearms were recovered in Mexico or connected to specific acts of violence, focusing instead on the purchasing arrangements, the cross-border travel pattern, and the smuggling method described by investigators.