A Whittier man was sentenced Monday to 121 months in federal prison for running an unlicensed firearm dealing operation that sold unregistered guns and for plotting the armed robbery of a confidential federal informant.
Salvador Lopez, 24, was also ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
He pleaded guilty in October in L.A. federal court to one count of engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a license and one count of armed robbery of United States currency while using a dangerous weapon.
Ivan Quintos, 27, of Azusa, another defendant charged in the case, also pleaded guilty in October to one count of firearms trafficking. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April, when he will face up to 15 years in federal prison.
The two remaining defendants charged in this case — Mark Perez, 23, and Zachary Dry, 24, both of Nevada — pleaded guilty to criminal charges and are awaiting sentencing.
Prosecutors said Perez and the other defendants used social media to coordinate and sell more than five dozen firearms. Some of the defendants used Instagram to sell the firearms, including ghost guns, Glock conversion devices, weapons with obliterated serial numbers and stolen guns, according to prosecutors.
The illegal firearm sales occurred in North Hollywood, Las Vegas and elsewhere, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. In total, Lopez allegedly sold or helped sell over a dozen weapons to law enforcement agents and those working for them. Neither Lopez nor his co-defendants are federal firearms licensees, prosecutors said.
Lopez also agreed to sell firearms to a confidential informant working for federal law enforcement, according to prosecutors. Instead of following through with the transaction, Lopez allegedly messaged an associate with instructions to rob the informant at gunpoint. The associate and his accomplices not only robbed the informant of $5,000, but also robbed the informant’s personal phone and vehicle, with Lopez then receiving a cut of the robbery’s proceeds, court papers show.
“Selling firearms illegally and putting more untraceable weapons into the community shows a blatant disregard for the law and puts the safety of our citizens at great risk,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement. “This defendant’s (Lopez) lengthy sentence should serve as a warning to others that law enforcement will act decisively to prevent violent gun crime.”