FRESNO – Two men from Southern California have been convicted of illegally selling counterfeit firearms and methamphetamines with ties to the Central Valley dating back to 2020.
Angel Lopez, 47, and Rochlem Eric Aquino Yadao, 48, were found guilty in federal court of conspiracy to traffic illegal firearms and drug trafficking charges. The two are scheduled for sentencing on Aug. 25. Lopez could face 10 years to life, while Yadoa could face up to 10 years in prison.
According to court documents, in March 2020, Lopez arranged the sale of five pounds of methamphetamines, including two bags of “blue” meth. Also in 2020, several individuals conspired to deal firearms in Fresno, San Luis Obispo and Santa Maria Counties. In April 2020 specifically, individuals had arranged an illegal gun sale that took place at Yadoa’s Santa Maria residence.
Yadao personally stored and delivered the firearms at his house and took cash payment for the weapons. Both guns were “ghost guns,” and did not have serial numbers. Yadao did not have a license to deal firearms. The guns were seized by law enforcement shortly after the deal occurred. Law enforcement tracked the sales and made arrests of the individuals, including Yadoa.
The case was the product of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, the California Highway Patrol, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Department of Justice, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, the Fresno Police Department, and the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office.
Assistant United States Attorneys Stephanie M. Stokman and Cody S. Chapple are prosecuting the case.
The distribution of ghost guns is difficult to track due to the lack of state and federal registration policies associated with weapons that can be made at home. The State of California reports that in 2013, just three unserialized guns were recovered in relation to crimes, but that number has risen to nearly 11,000 in 2021.
Nationally, the Bureau of Alcohol and Firearms reports that ghost guns, which can be made using 3D printers or assembled from unregistered parts, accounted for nearly 20,000 instances of agency tracing in 2021. This was about double of the previous year.
