ICE: 2 had AK-47 assault rifles, ammo for Mexico
EL PASO — Two men were arrested on charges of conspiring to smuggle 11 AK-47 assault rifles, thousands of rounds of ammunition, bayonets and other items into Mexico in a scheme officials believe would have contributed to cartel violence.
Officials said Miguel Angel Dominguez, 25, and Begmar Ivan Ruiz-Zuniga, 30, appeared before federal Magistrate Judge Norbert Garney on Monday. Garney set a $50,000 bond for Dominguez and ordered Ruiz-Zuniga, a non-immigrant visa border crossing card holder, to remain at the El Paso County Jail.
ICE officials suspect Dominguez and Ruiz-Zuniga of “participating in a large international network that conspires to smuggle into Mexico assault weapons.”
Lawyers for the defendants could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
“Especially considering the ongoing bloody war between feuding cartels south of the border, this weapons seizure is significant,” Julio Velez, acting special agent in charge of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Office of Investigations in El Paso, said in a statement. “This seizure highlights the importance the importance of ICE’s mission to enforce the nation’s arms export control laws.”
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