Cristian Lopez-Moncion, 36, of the Dominican Republic, is headed to federal prison after being caught with a modified Glock 9 mm capable of fully automatic fire on the streets of St. Thomas. Lopez-Moncion, an illegal alien with no right to possess a weapon in the U.S., was sentenced to 24 months in prison for the crime, marking a hard stop to a dangerous gamble with public safety.
District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez handed down the sentence today, ordering Lopez-Moncion to serve two years behind bars followed by three years of supervised release. The court also imposed a mandatory $100 special assessment, a small price compared to the risk he posed carrying a weapon that should never have been on Virgin Islands soil.
The case traces back to August 6, 2016, when the Virgin Islands Police Department responded to multiple 911 calls reporting shots fired on Main Street in St. Thomas. Officers arrived to chaos—shell casings littered the pavement, and witnesses pointed toward a fleeing man later identified as Lopez-Moncion. A search led to the recovery of the illegally modified firearm, which forensic analysis confirmed had been altered to fire in full-auto mode—an unmistakable sign of criminal intent.
Lopez-Moncion pleaded guilty on June 14, 2017, to the charge of possession of a firearm by an illegal alien. Court documents make clear: he is not a legal resident of the United States and has no firearm license or authorization to carry a weapon in the U.S. Virgin Islands. His presence alone was a violation. The weapon in his hands turned it into a federal offense with teeth.
The investigation was a joint operation between the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Virgin Islands Police Department—agencies that continue to battle illegal gun trafficking in the territory. With weapons flooding in from off-island sources, cases like this expose the fragile line between order and chaos in St. Thomas communities.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Sigrid M. Tejo-Sprotte prosecuted the case with a focus on accountability. U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert emphasized that illegal firearms in the hands of unauthorized individuals will be met with full federal consequences. For Cristian Lopez-Moncion, that means two years in prison and a permanent criminal record—time served for playing with fire in the territory’s streets.
Related Federal Cases
- Logan Cobell Sentenced in St. Thomas Firearm Case · U.S. Virgin Islands
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- Taylor Gets 9 Years for Illegal Firearm · Oklahoma
- Dominican Man Gets 41 Months for Cocaine Smuggle Plot · U.S. Virgin Islands
- Puerto Rico Man Pleads Guilty to AK-47 Trafficking in St. Thomas · Puerto Rico
Key Facts
- State: Virgin Islands
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Weapons
- Source: Official Source ↗
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