4 sentenced for trafficking guns in metro Atlanta, smuggling them to Dominican Republican
Four people have been sentenced for their involvement in a gun trafficking ring
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According to court documents, in 2021, Jonathan Hiraldo Abreu, 31, of Reading, Pennsylvania contacted Cornel Rashard Miley 31, of Lithonia, to ask about a gun Miley advertised for sale.
Hiraldo Abreu met Miley in Georgia to purchase the gun. Miley then agreed that he and his wife, Charqweshia Sierra Miley, 33, of Lithonia, would get more guns for Hiraldo Abreu in exchange for a premium paid for each gun.
To get more guns, the Mileys repeatedly deceived licensed gun dealers to buy the firearms. Officials say Hiraldo Abreu was the actual purchaser who provided the money to the Mileys and told them which guns to buy.
Authorities said within less than seven months, the Mileys purchased at least 73 guns for Hiraldo Abreu, all of which were Glock 9 mm semiautomatic pistols.
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The Northern District of Georgia Attorney’s Office states that Hiraldo Abreu traveled from Pennsylvania to Georgia in November 2021, December 2021, February 2022, and April 2022 to pick up guns from the Mileys. In June 2022, Hiraldo Abreu recruited his cousin, Jose Munoz, 21, of Cranston, Rhode Island, to manage the gun purchases in his place.
Munoz met Hiraldo Abreu in Pennsylvania, traveled to Georgia, directed the Mileys’ purchase of 22 guns, and then went back to Hiraldo Abreu’s home, court documents revealed. Within three weeks, nine of the guns that the Mileys purchased under Munoz’s supervision were recovered during an x-ray inspection of a shipping container in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The guns had been reportedly stashed inside the container with various household goods.
The Mileys bought guns for Hiraldo Abreu between November 2021 and April 2022, before relocating to Arizona in June 2022. Hiraldo Abreu paid the Mileys to fly back to Georgia so they could falsely claim Georgia residency and buy more guns for him in July 2022.
After returning to Arizona, the Mileys were arrested when officers noticed them driving a vehicle with a fake license plate.
Officers seized more than 3,200 rounds of ammunition, nearly three dozen handgun magazines, and body armor after searching the vehicle.
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All four pleaded guilty to conspiracy to make a false statement to a federally licensed firearms dealer in connection with the acquisition of a firearm.
Hiraldo Abreu was sentenced to four years and two months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release.
Charqweshia Sierra Miley was sentenced to two years and three months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release.
Cornel Rashard Miley was sentenced to two years, and three months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release.
Munoz was sentenced to one year and one month in prison, followed by two years of supervised release.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence.
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