A Mexican criminal illegal alien who smuggled over 90 firearms into the United States has pleaded guilty to federal weapons charges following an investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
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Samuel Rodrigo Melo Santos brought the weapons into the country for the purpose of re-selling them to anyone who could buy them, including people who couldn’t legally buy them, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesman told American Greatness, Monday.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon announced that Melo Santos pleaded guilty on August 6 to being an alien in possession of a firearm and making false statements in acquisition of a firearm. He will serve his sentence in the U.S. and then be removed from the country, DHS said.
Melo Santos illegally entered the United States through Arizona in May 2024, according to DHS. He was arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol and deported back to Mexico, but allegedly re-entered the United States at an unknown date and location.
According to DHS, Melo Santos purchased 91 firearms for $56,448 and 40,000 rounds of ammunition between May 2024 and July 2025. One of the firearms, they said, was later recovered in Mexico.
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The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) arrested Melo Santos on December 16, 2025 and transferred him to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS).
“This criminal illegal alien from Mexico pleaded guilty to buying more than 90 guns and 40,000 rounds of ammunition so he could illegally re-sell them,” said a DHS Spokesperson. “Thanks to the hard work of the men and women of ICE HSI, as well as our federal partners at the DOJ, ATF, and DEA, this criminal is off the streets and will no longer be able to continue his deadly trade. Once his sentence is complete, ICE will remove him from our country.”
The investigation was led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), with assistance from ICE HSI and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Assistant U.S. Attorney Judith Harper is prosecuting the case.
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