170 Guns Listed in Amarillo Federal Case Accusing 4 of Arming the Sinaloa Cartel — Judge Calls One Defendant “an Artist in Evading Law Enforcement”
Federal prosecutors in Amarillo, Texas, have filed a list of 170 seized firearms in a case accusing four people of supplying guns to the Sinaloa cartel, KFDA NewsChannel 10 reported on Sept. 16, 2026. A federal judge has ordered one defendant held, calling him “an artist in evading law enforcement.”
The charges
According to KFDA, Loyd Walter Hall, Jesus Quezada Meza, Omar Velasquez and Catlynn Ann Townsend are named in a 12-count indictment filed in June. Prosecutors accuse them of working together to provide firearms to the Sinaloa cartel, which the U.S. has designated a foreign terrorist organization. Hall is charged in all 12 counts, including the most serious one, providing material support to a designated terrorist organization. He is also charged with a drug conspiracy involving 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 5 kilograms or more of cocaine and 1 kilogram or more of heroin. Meza and Velasquez each face two firearms counts. Townsend is charged with making a false statement in a firearms dealer’s records.
All of these are allegations. None of the defendants has been convicted.
170 guns, including 2 machine guns
KFDA reported that prosecutors filed a bill of particulars describing each of the 170 seized firearms. By the station’s count, they include about 95 rifles (many of them World War I and II-era military surplus), about 55 pistols, about 10 revolvers and five shotguns. There are also two machine guns: a U.S. military surplus M2 .30-caliber and an unidentified model with no serial number.
According to KFDA, one of Velasquez’s counts comes from a separate raid on a suspected Sinaloa cartel compound. Agents there seized a .50-caliber Barrett rifle, grenades, 2,500 rounds of ammunition, a drone, suspected cocaine and a phone.
27 border crossings in 15 months
KFDA reported that a magistrate judge in California first ordered Velasquez released after U.S. Marshals arrested him at the border. On Aug. 12, U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk revoked that release. The judge’s order says Velasquez crossed from Mexico into the U.S. at least 27 times between January 2025 and March 2026, using at least nine different vehicles.
The order also cites messages from the seized phone. According to KFDA, they show Velasquez discussing how to smuggle weapons without drawing attention from border agents, and describing a “firefight” with the Mexican military. Kacsmaryk wrote that releasing him “would allow the continuation of deadly weapons-smuggling for violent cartel operations.” Hall, Meza and Velasquez remain in the Randall County Jail on federal holds. Townsend was released on a personal bond.
Sources
Reported Sept. 24, 2026, from KFDA’s account of court filings. The Narco Blog did not review the indictment, bill of particulars or detention order directly. All four defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.