Man accused of selling guns, gun parts from Louisiana prison to extremists, undercover NYPD officer

NEW YORK (WABC)– New York state and federal authorities announced charges Tuesday against an alleged gun trafficker who sold firearms and gun parts from prison in a case described as the “confluence of weapons and of extremism.”

Hayden Espinosa, 24, allegedly sold illegal firearms and components to an undercover NYPD officer while incarcerated in a federal prison in Louisiana. He is charged with four counts of transporting a firearm and one count of attempted criminal sale.

Authorities say Espinosa would advertise silencers, high-capacity magazines, Glock-style handguns and automatic triggers – rapid-fire modification devices that can turn a semi-automatic weapon into a machine gun.

Espinosa allegedly sold these weapons through the Telegram application. His channel titled “3-D Amendment” included an image of an individual wearing a swastika armband.

Authorities say Espinosa promoted racially motivated extremist views that attracted buyers who stockpiled guns and committed violence.

“This is a great example of how, in today's world, even a simple crime often has a very multidimensional context, as was the case with this investigation,” said Rebecca Weiner, deputy commissioner of the NYPD's fight against terrorism.

He allegedly made these sales from a Louisiana prison on cell phones smuggled behind bars.

Authorities came to Espinosa after the 2022 racially motivated mass shooting at the Tops supermarket in Buffalo, in which white supremacist Payton Gendron killed 10 Black people.

In the month before his murderous and racist rampage, Peyton Gendron hung out on the Telegram channel called 3D Amendment, which was a “hub of ethnically and racially motivated extremist ideology,” law enforcement said Tuesday in announcing the charges against Espinosa.

“We see far too often this sad and tragic combination, at the intersection of gun violence, arms trafficking, hatred and extremism. It's very, very disturbing,” said the district attorney. district of Manhattan, Alvin Bragg.

Furthermore, the authorities state:

August 7, 2023: Espinosa allegedly sold two automatic triggers, one for a Glock-style handgun and one, 3D-printed, for an AR-style rifle to an undercover cop.

August 25, 2023: Espinosa allegedly attempted to sell a Glock-19 handgun to the officer.

November 13, 2023: Espinosa allegedly sold two gun silencers to the police officer.

“It is alarming to think of the extent of the devastation these high-powered weapons and pieces could have caused on the streets if they had been sold by Espinosa in our communities if this investigation had not been so conclusive,” Darren McCormack , Special Agent in Charge – Homeland. Security – New York Office, said.

Espinosa was released from his federal prison sentence in Louisiana on June 4 and immediately arrested according to the New York Supreme Court indictment.

His arraignment is June 24.

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Some information from ABC News

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