El Paso man arrested on federal firearm charges, gun sold recovered at crime scenes, Mexico

An El Paso man was arrested for allegedly illegally selling guns later used in crimes or found in Mexico, authorities said.

Jesse Garay, 26, was arrested Monday, May 20, on one count each of trafficking in firearms and dealing firearms without a license. He also is charged with two counts of false statement during a firearm acquisition, U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Texas officials said.

He remains in jail without bond as of Wednesday, May 22, jail and federal court records show. A bond hearing is scheduled for Friday, Garay's attorney Ray Velarde said.

"I am getting acquainted with the facts of the case right now and the only thing that has been publicized is the indictment," Velarde said. "I know Jesse. I know this young man. I have known him for a long time. I intend to look out for his best interest in the hope that we can address this matter in a just way."

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Garay, if convicted, is facing up to 15 years in prison for the trafficking charge, five years for the dealing without a license charge, and 10 years for each false statement charge, officials said.

He was arrested after a federal grand jury indicted him on the charges, a federal indictment states.

Guns recovered at crime scenes, Mexico

Garay purchased "numerous guns" between Sept. 7, 2022 and March 24, 2023, officials said. A federal indictment states two of the guns were a "ATI, Model Omni Hybrid, 5.56x45mm pistol and a Century Arms, Model Micro Draco, 7.62x39mm pistol."

He purchased the guns and allegedly claimed on U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives forms that he was "the actual transferee/buyer of the firearm(s) listed on this form," officials said.

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He "knew he was in fact not the actual buyer of the firearm listed on the form, as he was purchasingthe firearm for another person, and not for himself," the indictment states.

Private messages obtained by law enforcement officers through a search warrant allegedly revealed Garay sold the guns to other people, including a minor, officials said. No information was released on the age of the minor.

At least three of the guns purchased by Garay were allegedly recovered at crime scenes or in Mexico, officials said. No information was released on what crimes scenes the weapons were found at nor if they were in El Paso.

Aaron Martinez may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on Twitter @AMartinezEPT.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso man arrested on firearm charges for illegally reselling guns