A 22-year-old man from Sonora, Mexico, Abel Airam Franco Garcia, has been sentenced to over three years in federal prison after attempting to smuggle firearms and suspected narcotics across the border into Mexico. Franco Garcia received a 37-month prison term on Monday, which will be followed by three years of supervised release, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The conviction stems from an incident in late June last year when Franco Garcia was stopped at the San Luis, Arizona, Port of Entry. During a routine search, authorities discovered four firearms, six magazines (with two being high-capacity), ammunition, and substances believed to be fentanyl in his possession. To later admit to having driven to Phoenix on the same day, intending to transport these items to Mexico for monetary gain, marks a critical acknowledgment in the case.
Franco Garcia had previously entered a guilty plea for Smuggling Goods from the United States. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ben Goldberg from the District of Arizona, Phoenix, was the leading prosecutor on the case which falls under the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative. The Department of Justice revamps PSN with a focus to "reduce violent crime and gun violence" and to "make our neighborhoods safer for everyone," states the release.
