Marine Arrested for Stealing Military Weapons

A Marine from California has been arrested by federal authorities who allege he treated a military armory like a personal pawn shop, stealing advanced missile systems and selling them in Arizona.

Corporal Andrew Paul Amarillas, originally from Arizona and working as an ammunition technician at Camp Pendleton, is accused of taking a significant amount of restricted military items, including Javelin missile systems and military-grade ammunition, as outlined in federal court filings.

Federal agents have reportedly recovered at least one powerful weapon system along with some ammunition, but there’s concern that around “2 million rounds of M855” ammunition could still be unaccounted for, as mentioned by sources.

In one instance, Amarillas allegedly supplied approximately 30 cans of ammunition, totaling about 25,000 rounds, to an accomplice. Investigators claim he managed to steal and sell 66 cans of M855 rifle ammunition over about two weeks, but only around one-third has been retrieved.

The Javelin, known as a “shoot-and-forget” anti-tank missile system, is capable of penetrating heavy tank armor from considerable distances, according to Lockheed Martin, which collaborates with RTX in producing the Javelin missile system.

Currently, Amarillas faces numerous federal charges, including conspiracy to commit theft and embezzlement of government property, as well as possession and sale of stolen ammunition.

He remains in custody without bail while awaiting trial.