TUCSON, AZ – A former driver for the U.S. Consulate in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, Luis Manuel Bray-Vazquez, was sentenced this week to 46 months in prison for attempting to smuggle firearms from the United States into Mexico after pleading guilty.
On November 4, 2020, Bray-Vazquez, age 35, attempted to enter Mexico through the Nogales Port of Entry while driving a U.S. Consular vehicle. Customs and Border Protection officers tried to conduct an outbound border search of the vehicle, but Bray-Vazquez fled from the officers at a high rate of speed. Officers reacted quickly and were able to close the exit gate to prevent Bray-Vazquez from entering Mexico. They searched the Consular vehicle that Bray-Vazquez was driving and found a total of ten rifles and five pistols, including a Barrett .50 caliber rifle and several AK-47 and AR variant rifles and pistols.
Bray-Vazquez admitted he was being paid to smuggle the firearms into Mexico and that he had successfully done so on previous occasions.