Possible Life in Prison Awaits Man Trading Drugs for Machine Guns & Grenade Launchers
TIJUANA – A Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)-led investigation has landed
a hearing in Los Angeles. Pedro Roberto Hernandez-Gomez (32), a U.S citizen residing in Tijuana,
Mexico has pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.
The federal narcotics charge was the result of field investigators finding Hernandez-Gomez in L.A. on
01/07/2020 trading fentanyl for machine guns, grenade launchers and purported grenades. “He provided approximately 1 kilogram of heroin and approximately 1 kilogram of fentanyl in exchange for three Bushmaster 5.56 mm machine guns, three 40 mm grenade launchers, and 72 inert grenades (which he believed were live explosives),” said ATF.
The arrest came when the convicted felon, who is not allowed to possess firearms, had loaded the
munitions into his van. ATF added, “According to an affidavit filed with a criminal complaint in this case, he admitted he planned to transport the guns and explosives back to Tijuana, Mexico.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Fillmore of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California
is prosecuting the case. The sentencing hearing will take place June 11th before U.S. District Judge
André Birotte Jr., where Hernandez-Gomez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal
prison and a statutory maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Mission Statement: ATF recognizes the role firearms play in violent crimes and pursues an integrated
regulatory and enforcement strategy. Investigative priorities focus on armed violent offenders and career
criminals, narcotics traffickers, narco-terrorists, violent gangs, and domestic and international arms
traffickers.
