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Published on February 04, 2025
Wisconsin Man Indicted for Alleged Illegal Export of Firearms to Saudi Arabia in Multiyear SchemeSource: Google Street View

A Viroqua, Wisconsin man has been indicted on charges linked to an alleged five-year scheme exporting firearms and related parts to buyers in Saudi Arabia without a license, as per a recent unsealing of a six-count indictment. Mark John Buschman, aged 60, is accused of running this operation between February 2019 and December 2024, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Ohio.

Court documents reveal that throughout the alleged conspiracy, Buschman engaged with Saudi Arabian customers via online marketplaces, including eBay, selling them firearms and parts valued at approximately $398,000. In a method attempting to skirt around federal scrutiny, household appliances and tools such as toasters and space heaters were used as vessels for sneaking firearms and parts out of the country. Car axles concealed rifle barrels, and smaller pistols were smuggled sitting inside of toasters, all shipped using falsified return addresses through the U.S. Postal Service to freight forwarders.

Charges against Buschman include the conspiracy to smuggle goods from the United States, attempted smuggling, and shipping firearms with altered serial numbers. Furthermore, he faces accusations of trafficking firearms without a license and making false statements to federal inspectors.

If convicted, Buschman potentially confronts up to 42 years in prison alongside fines reaching $1.5 million. The indictment highlights that a federal district court judge, taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines along with other statutory factors, will be responsible for determining his sentence. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew Shepherd and Jerome J. Teresinski will lead the prosecution, with the assistance from Trial Attorney Christopher Cook of the Department’s National Security Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Corey Stephan of the Western District of Wisconsin's Office.

The Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Cleveland Office, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Cleveland Office (of the Pittsburgh Division), and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) collaborated, with support from elements of the Office of Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in investigating the case. As noted in the indictment, Buschman, like all defendants, remains innocent until proven guilty in the court of law.