Albuquerque Felon Adrian Banks Gets 64 Months for Gun Crimes

Adrian Banks, 28, of Albuquerque, N.M., is headed to federal prison for 64 months after being convicted of illegally possessing three firearms as a convicted felon. The sentence, handed down in federal court, marks another win in a sweeping ATF crackdown targeting violent repeat offenders flooding the streets with illegal guns.

Banks pleaded guilty on November 4, 2016, to being a felon in possession of firearms, admitting he was found with three weapons on June 7, 2016. His criminal history — including prior felony convictions for second-degree kidnapping and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon — legally barred him from owning or handling firearms or ammunition.

The case against Banks emerged from a massive federal operation launched in April 2016, when ATF agents from across the country flooded into New Mexico. The multi-agency task force, targeting the ‘worst of the worst’ offenders, resulted in 59 indictments and one criminal complaint charging 104 Bernalillo County residents with federal firearms and narcotics trafficking offenses.

Banks wasn’t alone. He was indicted alongside Marcus Sowell, 20, Damon Giles, 23, Michael Borrego, 25, and Marcus Lewis, 27. The 12-count indictment detailed a web of illegal gun dealing and drug distribution. Banks was specifically charged with engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a license on June 7, 2016, the same day he possessed the three unregistered guns.

Other charges in the indictment paint a broader picture of underground gun commerce and drug trade. Giles faces multiple counts of being a felon in possession and dealing firearms illegally, while also charged with distributing cocaine alongside Lewis. Borrego and Sowell face charges tied to unlicensed firearm dealing and possession of unregistered weapons, including items not listed in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.

To date, 25 of the 104 defendants have entered guilty pleas, including Sowell, Giles, Borrego, and Lewis. Two have already been sentenced. The rest have pleaded not guilty. The investigation was led by the ATF’s Albuquerque office and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James D. Tierney. Charges are pending and defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.