Nearly 400 weapons seized, father, son face smuggling charges: Feds

(NewsNation) — Two men face federal smuggling charges after they were found to be carrying nearly 400 weapons inside tractor-trailers that federal immigration officials stopped on a bridge headed for Mexico, Department of Homeland Security sources confirmed.

Emilio Ramirez-Cortez, a lawful U.S. permanent resident, and his son, Edgar Ramirez-Diaz, a U.S. citizen, were arrested last week after Customs and Border Protection officers found the weapons during an inspection of the vehicles in Laredo, Texas.

NewsNation sources said an inspection of the vehicles led to agents discovering the firearms of various calibers and thousands of rounds of ammunition inside hidden compartments in the vehicles.

Customs and Border Protection agents seized nearly 400 weapons found inside vehicles driven by a father and son. (Department of Homeland Security)

Agents noticed what they characterized as irregular panels on the vehicles, which led agents to investigate further. Sources said that the weapons, which included high-powered rifles, were bound for Mexico, where they could be used by criminal drug cartels.

Chris Clem, a retired U.S. Border Patrol sector chief, told NewsNation that the weapons and ammunition were likely part of a deal for drugs or cash that were moving into the United States from Mexico.

"Those weapons are not going to be used for self-defense," Clem said. "They're going to be used for cartels for criminal actions against citizens in Mexico and or U.S. federal law enforcement."

Both men appeared in court Monday and NewsNation is awaiting details of the hearing. The father and son remain in the custody of U.S. Marshals, and the investigation into the incident remains ongoing to determine if anyone else may have been involved.

Art Del Cueto, a border advisor for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, told NewsNation that he has been concerned with operations that send weapons and other goods to Mexico. Del Cueto said that he believes cash is often being moved to Mexico to help transnational criminal organizations.

He said the seizure of such a large number of weapons is a sign that cartels remain a big issue for U.S. agencies working along the southern border. Del Cueto said the fact that weapons were involved suggests that the guns and ammunition were headed to Mexico were a payoff for something that was moved from Mexico into the United States.

But he said that the cartels were almost certainly the destination. The criminal organizations, he said, not only remain active but are at war with other cartels in the ongoing fight for territory in Mexico.

"They're trying to arm their army, I guess you could say," Del Cueto told NewsNation.