Orlando Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Firearm Offenses

Orlando, Florida – Chief U.S. District Judge Anne C. Conway has sentenced Anthony Kenty Soto-Lopes (34, Orlando) to five years in federal prison for possessing an unregistered machinegun, silencer, and short barreled rifle, and for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The Court also ordered him to forfeit five Glock pistols that law enforcement recovered from his residence during the investigation. Soto-Lopes pleaded guilty on December 19, 2014.

According to court documents, on September 4, 2014, in Orlando, Florida, Soto-Lopes purchased four Glock pistols, a Glock machinegun, a silencer, and four devices designed for converting firearms into fully automatic weapons from an undercover agent and a confidential informant. As Soto-Lopes presented payment ($4,955) for these firearms, agents arrested him and recovered all of the firearms that he had purchased. After his arrest, Soto-Lopes admitted to agents that he had illegally shipped firearms and weapons from Florida to Puerto Rico using mail or commercial carriers, including the shipment of a grenade launcher. During a subsequent search of Soto-Lopes’s residence, agents recovered numerous other firearms and ammunition, including five Glock pistols and a short-barreled rifle.

Under federal law, Soto-Lopes was prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition because of a previous felony conviction in Puerto Rico. Neither the silencer, the machinegun, conversion devices, nor the short-barreled rifle were registered to Soto-Lopes in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, as required by federal law.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew C. Searle.

This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy. United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Regina Lombardo, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is another example of ATF’s Frontline Strategy to impact violent crime within our communities.