A Texas man will spend more than three years in prison after pleading guilty to possessing a machine gun that he fired near an Air Force base in San Antonio, prompting base security guards to fire back. (Rose L. Thayer/Stars and Stripes)
A Texas man will spend more than three years in prison after pleading guilty to possessing a machine gun that he fired near an Air Force base in San Antonio, prompting base security guards to fire back.
Joseph Anthony Jimenez, 20, fired a stolen 9mm pistol equipped with a machine gun conversion device into a field near Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland during two separate incidents on Aug. 17, 2024, according to the Justice Department.
He and another man, Ricardo Samaniego, who was 18 at the time, exchanged gunfire with Air Force Security Forces, the San Antonio Police Department said at the time.
Law enforcement connected Jimenez to the shootout after investigating another incident later the same day. Several people were playing with a gun when it went off and hit Samaniego, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said. A shell casing matched those found near Lackland.
Law enforcement arrested Jimenez on a state warrant Aug. 29, 2024. He was federally indicted with possession of a machine gun and possession of an unregistered firearm in November 2024, and transferred to federal custody.
Jimenez admitted to shooting his friend and then throwing the handgun over a fence at an apartment complex, the Justice Department said. He pleaded guilty in December to both charges and was sentenced Wednesday to 40 months in prison.
The conversion device on the pistol, also known as a “Glock switch,” allowed the firearm to act as a fully automatic weapon, according to the Justice Department. It is classified as a machine gun under the National Firearms Act, even when not installed.
A case against Samaniego in Bexar County court was dismissed last year, according to online court records.
