Gun Trafficker Sentenced to 135 Months in Prison for Robbery

Jonathan Manuel Flores, a 20-year-old from Chula Vista, California, was sentenced to 135 months in prison for his involvement in an illegal firearms business and for robbing an undercover ATF Special Agent at gun point during a machine gun deal gone wrong.

The incident occurred on February 17, 2023, in the parking lot of a Walmart on Murphy Canyon Road in San Diego. Flores had agreed to sell a Glock pistol with a full auto conversion device to the undercover agent for $2,400. However, after the agent finished counting $2,000 in cash, Flores pulled out the pistol and pointed it at the agent, demanding that they get out of the car.

Flores and his two accomplices fled the scene, but were later apprehended with the assistance of the San Diego Police Department. During the investigation, ATF special agents found that Flores had been involved in the trafficking of ‘ghost guns’ and guns modified with illegal auto conversion devices.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Evangeline Dech and Alicia Williams, as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program aimed at reducing gun violence and other violent crime.

U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon praised the efforts of law enforcement in keeping dangerous firearms out of the hands of felons. ‘This robbery is a stark reminder of the extreme danger our agents face every day in their efforts to keep illegal firearms off our streets,’ he said.

Flores’ sentence includes:

• 135 months in prison

He was also charged with:

• Assault on a Federal Officer with a Deadly or Dangerous Weapon – 18 U.S.C. § 111(b)
• Brandishing a Firearm in Furtherance of a Crime of Violence – 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)
• Engaging in the Business of Dealing Firearms Without a License – 18 U.S.C. § 922(a)(1)(A), 923(a), and 924(a)(1)(D); Aiding and Abetting – 18 U.S.C. § 2

This case is being investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

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