Kevin Durazo, 23, of Douglas, Arizona, was sentenced last week by United States District Judge John C. Hinderaker to 24 months in prison, followed by 36 months of supervised release. Durazo pleaded guilty to one count of Aiding and Abetting Making False Statements in Connection with Acquisition of a Firearm and one count of Making False Statements in Connection with Acquisition of a Firearm.

On October 5, 2021, Kevin Durazo and co-defendant, Mario Edoardo Ramirez Chavez, 22, of Mexico, traveled to Tucson from Douglas, Arizona, for the purpose of purchasing firearms. Durazo provided money to the co-defendant to purchase a 7.62x51mm (.308 WIN) caliber rifle from a licensed firearms dealer for Durazo.

The co-defendant purchased the rifle after filling out required paperwork indicating he was the actual buyer of the rifle, when in fact he was acquiring it at the request and direction of Durazo. Durazo then purchased a 9mm pistol from another licensed firearms dealer. Durazo filled out the required paperwork and stated that he was purchasing the firearm for himself, when in fact he was acquiring it for another individual. The two men were subsequently arrested by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) at the Douglas Port of Entry in their attempt to smuggle the 9mm pistol into Mexico.

Chavez, Durazo’s co-defendant, pleaded guilty to Smuggling Goods from the United States and Making False Statements in Connection with the Purchase of Firearms. Chavez was sentenced by Judge Hinderaker on October 7, 2022, to 16 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

HSI conducted the investigation in this case. Assistant United States Attorney Adam D. Rossi, District of Arizona, Tucson, handled the prosecution.