Jeremiah Dwyen Ashley, Unregistered Firearm, Texas 2023

Dallas man, Jeremiah Dwyen Ashley, 22, has been charged with two counts of possession of an unregistered firearm, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.

According to court documents, law enforcement reached out to Ashley after spotting an advertisement for Glock switches on Instagram. The devices convert ordinary semiautomatic pistols into fully automatic machineguns.

On May 24, an undercover officer met Ashley at a gas station in Garland and purchased three Glock switches for $1,200. When the officer asked how the devices worked, Ashley allegedly showed him how to install a switch on a pistol.

After confirming Ashley’s identity, the officer reached out to the Instagram account to arrange a second undercover purchase. In response, the officer received a screenshot of UPS tracking information. UPS security personnel told law enforcement that the package, which was addressed to another individual, was a part of a three-parcel shipment that originated from a company in Taiwan.

Law enforcement seized all three packages from a UPS distribution center on June 10. Inside the packages, they found 30 Glock switches, all surrounded by metal screws, likely included to obscure the packages’ contents. An undercover agent, posing as a package delivery person, delivered the packages to Ashley on June 14. After giving him a few moments to open the packages, law enforcement executed a search warrant on his apartment.

During the search, Ashley allegedly admitted that he knew the packages contained Glock switches and confirmed that he understood the purpose of a switch. He claimed that someone else ordered the packages but said they were intended for him. He allegedly admitted that he was known around the neighborhood for selling switches on Instagram.

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.

An indictment is merely an allegation of wrongdoing, not evidence. Like all defendants, Ashley is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

If convicted, Ashley faces up to 20 years in federal prison, 10 years per count.

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