An Albuquerque man has pled guilty to federal charges of firearm and drug trafficking, including the possession and sale of a machine gun.
According to court documents, Micah Maestas, 20, and two accomplices sold 3 grams of cocaine for $100 and a firearm with an attached machinegun conversion device for $1200 to an undercover officer on March 1, 2024.
Maestas also possessed a second firearm during this drug trafficking offense.
In a subsequent incident on May 9, 2024, Maestas and two others met the undercover officer to sell a rifle for $1100 and offered additional firearms for sale, including firearms with machinegun conversion devices.
During this interaction, the buyer claimed to be a felon, yet Maestas proceeded with the transaction.
The final incident occurred on July 3, 2024, when Maestas met the undercover officer alone and sold him a firearm fitted with an Invisible Switch machinegun conversion device for $1300.
Maestas admitted to installing the conversion device himself, knowing it would transform the semi-automatic weapon into a fully automatic firearm.
At sentencing, Maestas faces not less than five years and up to 25 years in prison, followed by not less than five years and up to life of supervised release.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated this case with assistance from the Albuquerque Police Department.
Assistant United States Attorney Letitia Carroll Simms is prosecuting the case.
Machine gun conversion devices and auto sears are illegal devices that transform semi-automatic firearms into fully automatic weapons capable of continuous firing with a single trigger pull.
The possession, manufacture, and sale of these devices without proper licensing is a federal offense carrying severe penalties, including up to 10 years in prison and fines up to $250,000.
The proliferation of these devices poses an immediate and critical threat to public safety.
The ATF urges the public to report any information about illegal firearms or conversion devices to help combat this threat.
Contact the ATF at 1-888-ATF-Tips (1-888-283-8477), email ATFTips@atf.gov, or visit www.atf.gov/atf-tips.
Key Facts
- State: New Mexico
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime|Weapons
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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