Anthony Maseda, Machinegun Trafficking, Georgia 2023

ATLANTA – In a brazen act of violence, Erik Arreola-Torres, 20, of Jonesboro, Georgia, opened fire on federal special agents and local law enforcement officers with a fully automatic machinegun when they arrived at his home to execute a search warrant on March 3, 2022.

Arreola-Torres, along with his co-defendant Anthony Maseda, conducted a firearm and machinegun trafficking operation out of a home in Jonesboro, Georgia, from January through March 2022. Maseda, a previously convicted felon, illegally imported auto sear devices, also known as ‘switches’, from China, which is a felony offense under federal law, even when the device is not installed in a firearm.

Maseda converted numerous firearms into fully automatic machineguns and then advertised the sale of machineguns, auto sears, and semi-automatic firearms on his public Instagram page. Federal special agents obtained a warrant to search the Jonesboro residence after Maseda and Arreola-Torres sold a machinegun, a semi-automatic firearm, and multiple switches to an undercover informant at the home.

During the search, agents located six fully automatic machineguns, four additional auto sears, five additional firearms, numerous firearm parts and magazines, ammunition, bulletproof body armor, and distribution quantities of marijuana and digital scales. One of the firearms had an obliterated serial number.

Erik Arreola-Torres was sentenced on May 7, 2023, by U.S. District Judge Steven D. Grimberg to ten years and one month in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. He pleaded guilty to possession of a machinegun and conspiracy to engage in the business of dealing in firearms without a license on October 17, 2022.

Anthony Maseda’s exact sentencing outcome was not mentioned in the source document.

U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan stated that Maseda and Arreola-Torres jeopardized the lives of multiple law enforcement officers and community residents during the investigation. ‘This office and its law enforcement partners will identify, target, and prosecute those individuals who threaten the safety of our communities by creating and selling automatic firearms.’

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