EL PASO, Texas – In a shocking move, two Mexican nationals, Maria Crisol Zuniga Alvarado, 40, and Carlos Antonio Torres Sandoval, aka Pichi, 42, were extradited to the United States to face firearm charges.
According to court documents, an investigation by law enforcement authorities identified a group of individuals in El Paso responsible for unlawfully exporting large numbers of firearms from the United States to Mexico between June 2017 and March 2018. The investigation identified Sandoval as the leader of the organization.
The Justice Office’s Office of International Affairs worked with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas to prepare a formal extradition request that was presented to Mexican authorities on November 9, 2020. Sandoval and Alvarado were arrested pursuant to that extradition request.
Alvarado and Sandoval are charged with one count of Conspiracy to Smuggle Goods from the United States and one count of Smuggling Goods from the United States and Aiding and Abetting the Same. Sandoval also is charged with one count of False Statement During a Firearm Acquisition and Aiding and Abetting the Same.
On March 8, 2022, Alvarado was detained without bond. Sandoval is scheduled for an arraignment and detention hearing today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Miguel A. Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.
If convicted, Alvarado and Sandoval face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy to smuggle charge and a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison on the smuggling charge. Sandoval also faces an additional maximum sentence of 10 years in prison on the false statement charge. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey C. Boshek, II; and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent in Charge Frank Burrola made the announcement.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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