Daniel Loyola Jr., Machine Gun Trafficking, Texas 2022

FORT WORTH, TX – A brazen attempt to arm a Mexican drug cartel with a military-grade machine gun landed Daniel Loyola, Jr., 24, of Fort Worth, a decade in federal prison. Loyola was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor after pleading guilty in December 2022 to possession of a machinegun.

The case unfolded after Loyola began flaunting his access to serious firepower on Instagram, posting about a potential machine gun, a silencer, and a .50 caliber rifle – a favorite among cartels. An undercover agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) took the bait, initiating a conversation that quickly revealed Loyola’s intent to sell to someone south of the border.

According to court documents, Loyola agreed to purchase an M-60 machine gun for $20,000 cash, explicitly stating the money would be coming from Mexico. On October 25, 2022, Loyola met with two undercover agents in a Fort Worth parking lot. He handed over the cash, and received a disassembled M-60. When one agent confirmed the weapon was fully automatic, Loyola responded, “Yeah, I know.” He was immediately arrested before he could leave the lot.

The investigation quickly revealed a pattern. Loyola admitted to purchasing the M-60 on behalf of an individual connected to a Mexican drug cartel, and confessed to previously selling multiple firearms to the same person. The .50 caliber rifle he’d advertised on social media was also purchased at the cartel’s behest, according to court records. This wasn’t a one-off deal; Loyola was actively building a pipeline for illegal weapons.

U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas, Leigha Simonton, hailed the sentence as a victory. “Thanks to excellent undercover work by ATF and Texas DPS, we have thwarted a firearms trafficker intent on sending dangerous guns to a drug cartel,” she said. “The Justice Department is committed to stemming the flow of firearms across the southern border.” ATF Dallas Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey C. Boshek II added, “Mr. Loyola’s ten-year sentence should serve as a warning to others looking to get into the firearms trafficking business.”

Judge O’Connor enhanced Loyola’s sentence based on evidence demonstrating his engagement in firearms trafficking. The investigation was a collaborative effort between the ATF’s Dallas Field Division, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Fort Worth Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Levi Thomas prosecuted the case. The ten-year sentence sends a clear message: arming cartels carries severe consequences.

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