Mexican nationals residing in the US have been sentenced to over eight years in prison for operating a straw purchasing scheme that supplied firearms to Mexican cartel members, all while under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program initiated during the Obama administration.
This week, 22-year-old Mario Eliarial appeared before US District Judge Randy Crane in McAllen, Texas, for a sentencing hearing. Leal had previously admitted guilt to straw purchasing offenses in 2024.
Judge Crane handed down a sentence of 97 months in federal prison. According to information from the US Attorney’s Office shared with Breitbart Texas, Leal is not a US citizen and will undergo deportation proceedings after serving his time. He had been in the US under the DACA program, meaning he was brought here illegally as a child but allowed to remain.
Federal prosecutors allege that Leal enlisted others to buy an AK-47-style rifle in southern Texas, which was then smuggled into Mexico. At the time of his arrest, authorities confiscated three AK-47 rifles that were acquired through two younger men who are US citizens and legally permitted to purchase weapons in Texas. The court documents do not identify the specific cartel involved, though the Gulf Cartel controls a region just south of McAllen.
As part of his guilty plea, Leal reportedly offered $300 to each individual who purchased a firearm on his behalf, circumventing US laws that prevent him from buying for himself. Federal prosecutors also indicated that at least 13 other weapons have either been acquired or are in the process of being obtained for him.
