CBP Officer Convicted of Purchasing Guns for Others

A federal jury found Manuel Eduardo Pena, a CBP officer, guilty of two counts of making a false statement in a firearms record and one count of making a false statement to a federal agency, said the Justice Department in a press release. Pena has been a CBP officer for 12 years and the charges are unrelated to his official duties. U.S. District Court Judge Hilda Tagle, who presided over the trial, has set sentencing for Nov. 19, at which time Pena faces up to five years in prison and a maximum $250,000 fine on each count of conviction. Previously released on bond, Pena was allowed to remain on bond pending sentencing.

At the trial, a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent testified that he witnessed Pena buy at firearm at the Academy Sporting Goods Store in Brownsville on Dec. 5, 2011. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Form 4473, required for firearms purchases, indicated Pena said he was buying the firearm for himself, but agents witnessed Pena take the firearm from the store and deliver it to another person in exchange for money. The person to whom he provided the firearm testified that, in fact, the gun was for him, not Pena.