David Pasillas Martinez, Alien in Possession of a Firearm, New Mexico 2024

David Pasillas Martinez, a 52-year-old Mexican national, is behind bars facing serious charges after a shocking discovery at the Las Cruces Gun Show in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

According to a federal complaint, agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) were conducting surveillance at the gun show on January 7, 2024, when they observed a vehicle with Chihuahua, Mexico license plates registered to Pasillas Martinez. Agents watched as Pasillas Martinez left the gun show and placed a firearm in the rear passenger side door of his vehicle before driving away.

HSI agents followed Pasillas Martinez from Las Cruces to El Paso, Texas, where a New Mexico State Police trooper executed a traffic stop on him for impeding traffic in a safety corridor. After the stop, HSI agents conducted an investigation of Pasillas Martinez, who agreed to speak with them.

Pasillas Martinez told agents that he was a Mexican national and had traveled to Las Cruces to attend the gun show and purchase a firearm because he knew vendors there would not ask for identification when selling a firearm. He claimed to have purchased three or four rifles and a pistol to take to Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico for sport shooting and planned to register the firearms in Mexico.

Pasillas Martinez identified himself as a Municipal Police Officer in Juarez and stated that he knew it was illegal to purchase firearms in the U.S. and export them to Mexico. However, he went ahead with the purchase anyway, allegedly to avoid detection.

A criminal complaint is only an allegation, and Pasillas Martinez is presumed innocent until proven guilty. If convicted on the current charges, he faces up to 15 years in prison. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Saltman, and Homeland Security Investigations investigated the case.

The incident has raised concerns about the ease with which individuals can purchase firearms in the United States and export them to Mexico. It also highlights the importance of effective border control and the need for stricter regulations on firearms sales.

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