Federal Reserve indicted on suspicion of barrel trafficking in central Florida

Below is an official statement from the US Lawyer’s Office in the Central District of Florida regarding the arrest of multiple individuals suspected of human trafficking firearms.

ORLANDO, Fla. — U.S. attorney Sarah C. Sweeney has announced her return to the charges being charged with six individuals involved in alleged gun trafficking. Additional individuals were charged individually with complaints in the same conspiracy. The indictment also informs the defendant that the United States intends to confiscate certain firearms recovered during the surgery.

Court documents show that since at least September 2023, LaFontaine and Maldonado are gun trafficking rings that include hundreds of firearms, machine guns, machine gun conversion devices and large-capacity magazines needed for fully automatic weapons, according to court documents. I ran the This operation did not include federally licensed firearm dealers. Instead, LaFontaine and Maldonado acquired firearm parts, including Chinese national Jinchen Sie. Lafontaine and Maldonado are said to have assembled, manufactured and modified semi-automatic and automatic firearms using a special “endmill” drilling rig in the “Ghost Gunner” machine and a workspace at the properties of Kissimmee Maldonado.

From there, Lafontaine and Maldonado, along with the assistance of Batiz, sell firearms that include fully automatic weapons and machine gun conversion devices (“chips” or “buttons”) used to convert semi-automatic weapons into engine rocks. I did. They sold these items to illegal aliens and were found guilty of Lopez Montanes, Rivera Robles and Joseph Guerra.

For example, on September 17, 2023, LaFontaine showed a completely automatic firearm to customers who were sold later during this operation, and on October 9, 2023, LaFontaine showed a Rivera Robles (convicted). (sinner) quoted the price of $150 for machine gun conversion. The device known as the “chip” was purchased by Rivera Robles in March 2024.

On February 7, 2025, LaFontaine sold Lopez Montanes (a convicted felon). The two firearms were sold to be incorrectly visible as if they were legal firearms manufactured with fake serial numbers engraved on them. When Lopez Montanes was stopped, he fled law enforcement and tried to hide the weapon he had ultimately recovered.

The next day, LaFontaine delivered five similar firearms to Maldonado.

On February 20, 2025, law enforcement agencies executed five search warrants at various locations related to the plot. The item is still invented. In advance, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, cigarettes, firearms and explosives (ATFs) recovered at least five AR-style pistols. Three machine gun conversion devices, machines used to assemble, modify and manufacture firearms and machine guns sold through this operation.

At Lafontaine residence, agents collect drug distribution supplies with completed rifles, gun parts, gun manufacturing and modification equipment, and field-tested powder of fentanyl packaged for sale. did. At Batiz residence, agents recovered handguns and AR pistols, four machine gun conversion devices, and drug equipment and powder were packaged for distribution that is still being tested. Eight handguns, three rifles and eight AR-style receivers were recovered from Shi’s residence and storage locker.

The indictment is a formal charge of a defendant committing one or more violations of federal criminal code, and all defendants are presumed to be innocent unless proven guilty.

The lawsuit was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and assisted by the Osceola County Sheriff’s Orlando Garden Police Department, Osceola County Sheriff’s Bureau of Investigation Following the incident, the Apopka Police Department, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Highway Patrol. He is indicted by US lawyer Dana E. Hill.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) and helps to reduce violent crime and gun violence and make our neighborhood safer for all. This is a program that brings together the community. On May 26, 2021, the department launched a violent crime reduction strategy that strengthens PSNs based on these core principles. It promotes community trust and legitimacy, and supports community-based organizations that prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting it focused and strategically and strategically. Measurement of enforcement priorities and outcomes.

This case was part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF uses a prosecutor-led, intelligence-led, multi-agency approach to identify, confuse and dismantle the highest level of criminal organizations that threaten the United States. For additional information about the OCDETF program, please visit www.justice.gov/ocdetf.