Thread: TX. ATF: 15 grenades sold in McAllen neighborhood

ATF: 15 grenades sold in McAllen neighborhood

MGN Online


Posted: Tuesday, June 2, 2015 10:21 pm
By JARED TAYLOR Staff Writer

McALLEN — Federal agents on Monday arrested two men accused of selling 15 live grenades to undercover informants near an elementary school and a Boys & Girls Club near downtown McAllen, according to court records unsealed Tuesday.

Agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives accused Alberto Joseph Ortiz, 26, of selling a live grenade to the informant last month at a house on the 800 block of South 26 1/2 Street in McAllen, a criminal complaint states.

On May 21, informant met with Javier Solis and asked about buying grenades, according to the complaint. A few minutes later, Ortiz arrived at the house with the grenade. The informant took a photo of it and said he would return later to purchase it.

Also charged in the case is Cesar Giovanni Flores-Tirado, who is accused of selling the grenade to the informant behind the house, according to a second criminal complaint. Agents said the informant paid $400 for the grenade.

ATF agents met with the McAllen police bomb squad to analyze the grenade, which appeared to be a “functional improvised explosive device,” the complaint states. Authorities tested some of the propellant inside the grenade, which ignited when exposed to a flame.

The same informant met May 22 with Solis, who sold him nine more grenades, the complaint states.

On May 27, an informant exchanged text messages with Solis, saying he wanted to buy five grenades, court records state.

Solis told the informant he could buy the grenades from Flores, who is accused of taking $2,000 for the five grenades.

On May 28, another ATF informant met with Ortiz, who said he had sold 10 grenades in the past week, according to the complaint. He told the informant he had more grenades available, but wasn’t sure how many.

Later that day, agents said Ortiz called the informant, who said he had 24 grenades available, the complaint states. And on Monday, Ortiz again met with the informant, saying he had 28 grenades available.

Agents arrested Ortiz on Monday, who admitted to living next door to an abandoned house along South 26 1/2th Street.
No criminal complaint has been filed against Solis as of Tuesday afternoon, according to online court records. Ortiz made an initial appearance Tuesday before a U.S. magistrate judge in McAllen.

ATF spokeswoman Nicole Strong said she could not comment on the ongoing case.

“We’ve still got quite a few moving parts going on, so to protect the integrity of the investigation we are not commenting at this time,” she said.

http://www.valleymorningstar.com/new...401141a00.html

It makes one wonder what they needed grenades for?

I trusdly hope that they have lots of moving parts going on. Few answers here yet. How many grenades are out there? Where are they coming from? Who is distributing them "wholesale?" How did they get them. From where did they get them? Are they American military grenades? Are cartels involved? Are they going to be found elsewhere? More answers will cause more questions, too.

FEDS UNCOVER BLACK MARKET FOR GRENADES IN TEXAS NEAR BORDER

AP Photo/Arizona Department of Public Safety

by ILDEFONSO ORTIZ 3 Jun 2015

MCALLEN, Texas — An undercover sting by federal agents and an informant revealed a bustling market for grenades and explosive devices in this Texas border city.

Agents with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives arrested Albert Joseph Ortiz and Cesar Geovanni Flores earlier this week on the charge of possession of a destructive device. They allegedly tried to sell 10 grenades to a government informant, court records obtained by Breitbart Texas revealed.

The case began on May 21, when a government informant went to a house on the south side of McAllen to meet with a man named Javier Solis, in regards to the purchase of a grenade.

Moments later Albert Joseph Ortiz arrived at the house with a grenade, intended to serve as a sample of sorts.

ATF agents had the McAllen Police Bomb Squad examine the grenade, and after doing a test burn with the material inside, they determined that it was in fact a live explosive. The agents directed the informant go back to Solis and purchase 9 more grenades.

On May 27, the same source called Solis about buying five more grenades, but Solis said he would not be available to deliver the merchandise, so he had his associate Flores deliver the grenades for him.

On May 28, another informant met with Ortiz, who spoke about selling 10 grenades the previous week, and said he had several more in case the informant wanted to buy some. After a few phone calls, Ortiz told the informant that he had a total of 28 grenades available.

On Monday the second informant spoke with Ortiz over the phone about buying a grenade from him. ATF agents arrested him later that day. Court records do not indicate whether Solis was arrested and charged as well, or if he had been part of the undercover sting operation.

Just across the Rio Grande, the Gulf Cartel has been undergoing a fierce internal struggle pitting two separate factions against each other. The fighting has set off large-scale gun battles and, as Breitbart Texas previously reported, a series of grenade attacks in the Mexican border city of Matamoros just last week.

Just last year, deputies with the Starr County Sheriff’s Office found four grenades and high-caliber rifles in a house where three Honduran men were murdered, as Breitbart Texas previously reported,

In 2009, The Monitor from McAllen reported on a man from the border city of San Juan who manufactured close to 200 grenades for Mexican drug cartels.

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/...-texas-border/

Photo By Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images

Grenades

Explosives are a common weapon for cartels with a preference for South Korean grenades. A 2009 wikileaks cable provided the U.S. government's analysis of "narco grenades".

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/loc...#photo-8081492

I.C.E. News Release

CONTRABAND

08/31/2015


Mexican man sentenced in South Texas to the maximum of 12 ½ years for delivering grenades to undercover special agents, re-entry after deportation

MCALLEN, Texas — A Mexican national living in the United States illegally was sentenced Monday to the maximum of 12 ½ years in federal prison for unlawfully possessing firearms, and re-entry after deportation.

This sentence was announced by U.S. Attorney, Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas. This investigation was conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), along with Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa sentenced Mario Alberto Garcia-Balderas, 45, of Mexico, to 10 years in federal prison for being illegally in the United States, possessing a firearm, and as a felon possessing a firearm. Judge Hinojosa sentenced Garcia-Balderas for the offense of re-entry after deportation to which he had previously pleaded guilty. The court sentenced him to 96 months in federal prison; 30 months of this sentence was ordered to be served consecutively to the sentence in the firearms case, for a total of 150 months or 12 ½ years.

In handing down the sentence, Judge Hinojosa noted that he had sentenced Garcia-Balderas twice before in federal cases and yet he still illegally re-entered the country and committed this very serious crime involving grenades. As an illegal alien, Garcia-Balderas is again expected to face deportation proceedings after he’s released from prison.

“Today's sentencing sends a clear message to individuals who purchase, transport or facilitate smuggling weapons, ammunition and other related items,” said Special Agent in Charge James Spero of HSI San Antonio. “Preventing these items from being acquired from or delivered to the wrong hands is a top priority for HSI. We will continue working with our domestic and international law enforcement partners in this effort.”

According to court documents, the investigation began in September 2009 after special agents received information that an individual or individuals were offering grenades for sale in the United States. Testimony at trial indicated Garcia-Balderas delivered improvised explosive device grenades to undercover special agents on three occasions: Sept. 17, Sept. 21, and Sept. 28, 2009. Prior to the delivery of the grenades on Sept. 21, Garcia-Balderas received a total of $24,960 in payment for the grenades.

Garcia-Balderas stipulated to the fact that he is a citizen of Mexico and that he had no status to be in the United States legally during 2009. He also agreed that prior to September 2009, he was previously convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year. As an illegal alien and a convicted felon, he is prohibited by federal law of possessing firearms or ammunition.

Garcia-Balderas will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/mexican-man-sentenced-south-texas-maximum-12-%C2%BD-years-delivering-grenades-undercover

Assistant U.S. Attorney Toni Trevino, Southern District of Texas, is prosecuting this case.

https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/mexican-man-sentenced-south-texas-maximum-12-%C2%BD-years-delivering-grenades-undercover

by Ildefonso Ortiz
1 Sep 2015

MCALLEN, Texas — A twice deported illegal alien with a long criminal history has been sentenced to prison for selling to undercover agents in Texas. On Monday morning, Mario Alberto Garcia Balderas went before Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa who sentenced him to 10 years in prison which is the maximum sentence possible for the charges. Garcia Balderas received another sentence in a separate charge for the charge of illegal re-entry after deportation for which he received 96 months in prison.

Earlier this year, Garcia Balderas was convicted of the charges of being an illegal alien in possession of a weapon and being a convicted felon in possession of a weapon, information provided to Breitbart Texas by the U.S. Attorney’s office revealed.

Homeland Security Investigations and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives began their investigation on September 2009 when they received information that Garcia was selling makeshift grenades. Agents set up an undercover sting and were able to purchase nine grenades from Garcia on three separate days in September in exchange for $24,960, the information provided by the U.S. Attorney’s office revealed.

In addition to his two prior deportations, Garcia had been convicted in 2000 on state charges for trafficking marijuana.

During his sentencing, Judge Hinojosa said that he had sentenced Garcia two times before in federal cases and yet he continued to illegally enter the country and commit very serious crimes.

Once Garcia concludes his sentence with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons he is expected to face deportation.

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/...-twice-before/

Mexican man given maximum sentence for selling grenades

Posted: Aug 31, 2015 6:36 PM CDTUpdated: Aug 31, 2015 6:36 PM CDT
McALLEN, Texas (AP) - A Mexican man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for delivering grenades to undercover agents.
The U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of Texas said Monday that 45-year-old Mario Alberto Garcia-Balderas was ordered to serve the statutory maximum after a federal jury convicted him of being in the U.S. illegally and for being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Garcia-Balderas was separately sentenced to 96 months in federal prison for re-entering the U.S. after being deported, an offense to which he had already pleaded guilty.
During Garcia-Baldera's trial, Homeland Security agents testified that he had sold grenades to undercover agents three times.
http://www.kxxv.com/story/29927079/m...lling-grenades