Amidst the streets of Amarillo, Texas, a brazen crime has unfolded. Gabriel Michael Rendon, a 28-year-old drug dealer, has been charged with a string of federal drug and gun offenses.
According to the indictment, Rendon allegedly possessed 76 firearms, including 43 pistols, 23 rifles, four shotguns, and four revolvers, in furtherance of his drug trafficking business. Due to an Arkansas state court conviction for possession of a controlled substance with purpose to deliver, he was legally barred from handling firearms.
Rendon also allegedly possessed at least 54 Glock switches, dangerous devices that convert regular semi-automatic pistols into machineguns capable of continuous fire with a single depression of the trigger. (Glock switches are classified as machineguns under federal law. Unlike semiautomatic firearms, machineguns – weapons that can fire more than one round, without manual reloading, by single function of the trigger – are generally unlawful for non-licensed civilians under the National Firearms Act.)
His wife, 26-year-old Jane Marie Burgess, was charged with false statement during the purchase of a firearm. She allegedly bought guns for her husband, lying on ATF Form 4473 by indicating that she was the actual buyer when she actually intended to hand them over to Rendon.
“Glock switches – inch-long devices that convert regular firearms into machineguns capable of a terrifyingly swift rate of fire – are proliferating rapidly in North Texas,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton. “An armed drug trafficker is always bad news; a drug trafficker armed with a switch is exponentially more dangerous. We cannot and will not allow these devices to take over our streets.”
Rendon allegedly told law enforcement that his wife bought guns for him, lying on ATF Form 4473. If convicted on all counts, Rendon faces up to life in federal prison; Burgess faces up to 10 years in prison. An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives’ Dallas Field Division – Amarillo Resident Agency, the Amarillo Police Department, and the Randall County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith Pinkham is prosecuting the case.
Mandatory Facts:
Defendant/Respondent Name: Gabriel Michael Rendon
Criminal Charges: Possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession of machineguns, possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and felon in possession of a firearm.
City and State: Amarillo, Texas
Date: July 26, 2023
Sentence or Outcome: Facing up to life in federal prison; Burgess faces up to 10 years in prison.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime|Weapons
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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