Source: United States Department of Justice News
DEL RIO, Texas – A federal grand jury in Del Rio returned an indictment last week charging two Texas men with smuggling goods from the United States.
According to court documents, on October 10, 2022 Miguel Angel Ocura-Arenas, 67, of San Antonio was arrested when he attempted to smuggle seven firearms along with 29 magazines, ammunition a rifle barrel and a universal fake suppressor into Mexico. The following day, Rafael Martinez, 40, of Dallas, was also arrested for attempting to smuggle seven firearms and more than 300 rounds of ammunition into Mexico.
Both defendants made their initial court appearances on October 12 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Collis White of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. Martinez and Ocura-Arenas have been detained without bond while awaiting further proceedings. If convicted, they each face a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release and a $100 special assessment. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
U.S. Attorney Ashley C. Hoff of the Western District of Texas and Acting Special Agent in Charge, Craig Larrabee, HSI San Antonio, made the announcement.
Homeland Security Investigations is investigating the case with assistance from Customs and Border Protection.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander Brown is prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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