Massachusetts – -(AmmoLand.com)-The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), in conjunction with local law enforcement, arrested a Holyoke, Massachusetts, man on charges of violating the National Firearms Act (NFA) and other gun-related crimes.
Daniel A. Augusto, 56, was charged with one count of possessing machine guns, six counts of unlawful possession of unregistered firearms, and one count of making false statements to federal agents. He was arraigned in federal court in Springfield on Friday.
“The unlawful possession of unregistered machine guns is a federal crime that ATF takes very seriously as it threatens the safety of our communities,” said James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Boston Field Division.
“ATF has had a long and productive relationship with our local, state, and federal law enforcement partners in combating violent crime and stopping the unlawful possession of firearms that are not legally registered.”
Mr. Augusto has been under investigation since February. On February 23, 2022, federal and local law enforcement officials claimed that Augusto was in unlawful possession of multiple unregistered firearms. Under Massachusetts State law, a gun owner must register their firearms. He was also found to possess several standard compacity magazines that are illegal in the state.
Mr. Augustro also had two suppressors lacking any markings. These silencers appeared to be homemade. Under the NFA, all hearing protection silencers must be registered with the ATF, and the owner must obtain a tax stamp to be able to own one. Making a homemade silencer is not illegal, although the end user must fill out an ATF Form 1, assign a serial number to the suppressor, and have the suppressor engraved.
The United States Attorney’s Office alleges none of that was done.
The ATF claims that Mr. Augustro had 42 machine gun conversion devices. Glock machine gun conversion switches accounted for 38 of these devices. These devices are available on Chinese websites and allow users to convert their Glock pistol into a machine gun. The ATF and postal inspectors have been cracking down on these devices.
But Forced Reset Triggers!?
Mr. Augustro also had four forced reset triggers.
These include three Rare Breed FRT-15 triggers and one Tommy Triggers FRT-15-3MD. The ATF has claimed these are machine guns leading to a long, drawn-out court battle between Rare Breed Triggers and the Federal Government.
This case seems like the first time the federal government claims the devices are machine guns when dealing with an individual owner.
Augusto allegedly possessed:
- One PTR Industries, Inc., model PTR 9, 9x19mm caliber firearm bearing serial number 9MC01048xx with one magazine and an altered HK MP5-type machinegun trigger housing installed;
- 38 “switch-type” Glock machinegun conversion devices bearing a counterfeit Glock logo;
- Three Rare Breed FRT-15 forced reset triggers designed to allow drop-in installation into AR-15 type firearms, with no serial number;
- One Tommy Triggers FRT-15-3MD forced reset trigger designed to allow drop-in installation into AR-15-type firearms, with no serial number;
- One Imperial Arms Co., model EFFEN 90, 5.7x28mm caliber firearm bearing serial number HXX37 with one magazine;
- One PTR Industries, Inc., model PTR 9, 9x19mm caliber firearm bearing serial number 9MK001951 with a collapsible shoulder stock, thread protector, electronic sight, and forward grip, and with one magazine;
- One Sig Sauer, model MPX, 9x19mm caliber firearm bearing serial number 62B058947 with an electronic sight, a forward grip, and a Maxim Defense collapsible shoulder stock, and with one magazine;
- One Intratec, model Tec-9, 9x19mm caliber firearm bearing serial number 54601, with a secondary forward grip and a synthetic sling; and
- Two black firearms silencers with no markings.
“Guns are deadly weapons. There are strict requirements regarding licensing for and registering of firearms. We believe Mr. Augusto not only unlawfully possessed numerous unregistered firearms, but also possessed a stockpile of machine guns and conversion devices that have the capability to rapidly cause death and destruction,” said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins.
“The illegal possession of firearms and, moreover, machine guns, greatly threaten the safety of our communities. Gun laws are in place for a reason. The conduct alleged here is very serious. My office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to identify and prosecute individuals who try to bring deadly weapons into our communities.”
Federal authorities also allege that Augusto lied to agents when questioned. They claim that Augusto told them that all the firearms in the house belonged to his son and his girlfriend. They claim he asked them to purchase some of the guns for him. He claims that he never asked the couple to buy him the firearms. It isn’t clear if Augusto is prohibited, but AmmoLand News ran a background check and didn’t turn up a criminal record.
Mr. Augusto is facing a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000 for each NFA violation. He is facing a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000 for lying to federal authorities.
About John Crump
John is an NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or www.crumpy.com.
atf needs to be gone
They think EVERYBODY has machine guns. And even if they did the machine gun dooms-day liberals would be very disappointed. Having “machine guns” doesn’t make anybody a killer. More like collectors.
So I take all these ILLEGAL WEAPONS decided to go on a killing spree ? Or is this more about Govt extortion ? These weapons were so dangerous, they didn’t even resist arrest. I’m truly surprised the mags, switches, & triggers didn’t become one super power. lol
What I’m concerned with, and all of us should be, is if the legality of the forced reset trigger is not fought for and won, there will be precedent on all future arguments going forward. That would open up a huge can of worms!
We need to know if this guy is a credible defendant or not, in front of a jury.
The ATF will want a Nazi cannibal meth cook type critter who’s also got NFA stuff. If this guy has been selling Glock auto switches to street gangs a jury is gonna consider him to be on that level.
What we HOPE is that most of the Glock switches found are prototypes, he hasn’t been selling, he’s just a homebrewer gone edgy but otherwise credible. Like basically half of the r/fosscad subreddit :).
Do we know what category this guy falls into?
The FRT thing is just a power play to try to roll them up with the other charges this guy is obviously going down for.
Hopefully the court is smart enough to pick that apart. Would be nice to see a dismissal of that charge so the make-stuff-up-as-we-go-along crew at ATF gets a reality check.
If the ATFE are going to start going after LEGAL gun owners, then Hunter Biden (a bonified prohibited person, by his own admission) needs to be facing the exact same charges with a conviction and MAXIMUM fines and prison time.
“…..unregistered machine guns is a federal crime that ATF takes very seriously as it threatens the safety of our communities,” NO, the Alphabet Boys threaten the safety of our communities, our Freedom, Liberties, and Rights…… I’ll take my chances with unregistered machine guns over Alphabet Boys.
The truth about what is legal and illegal is defined most of the time by people that know very little about the actual use of the products in question. The government surely can be accused of altering the facts to suite their arguments, The worst part is the actual defence that has to be undertaken by a legal team that might not truly understand what the governments positions now and in the past have been. Agencies like the ATF were created for just that purpose to do the dirty work while adding to the government’s argument. The guy in this… Read more »
Moral of the story, don’t buy from chi-com websites. All federal agencies are being used against you now. This guy was buying chi-com junk from chi-com websites and it was being delivered via the postman. The feds got him because they have weaponized the post office against us.
<p>As an aside, I was in a local Army-Navy store the other day and was appalled that 90+% of what they were selling was chi-com. I didn’t buy anything and won’t be going back.