Texas Man Who Allegedly Imported Switches Charged With Gun Crime

A Rockwall man who allegedly imported Glock switches from China has been charged with a firearm crime, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.

Joshua Javier Menjivar, 20, was charged via criminal complaint on Friday with unlawful possession of an unregistered firearm. He made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée Harris Toliver on Wednesday.

"This defendant allegedly imported machinegun conversion devices from China and installed at least one of them in an untraceable ghost gun," said Leigha Simonton, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas. "Whether manufactured abroad or printed here at home, switches are capable of firing a stunning amount of ammunition in seconds and are highly erratic - making them highly dangerous weapons. We cannot and will not allow these lethal devices to proliferate in north Texas."

 "As this arrest proves, we weren't joking a few weeks ago when we told you that we were coming for you. The possession or importation of machine gun conversion devices will eventually lead to a visit by ATF or any of our law enforcement partners. I commend US Attorney Simonton and her team for their dedication to protecting the people of North Texas by aggressively prosecuting these cases. Further, I thank our partners at CBP who work tirelessly to keep Americans safe, a lot of times going unnoticed."

According to the complaint, on May 16, Customs & Border Protection agents intercepted a suspicious package bound for Mr. Menjivar's home. The parcel allegedly contained four machinegun conversion devices, also known as switches.

Further investigation showed that between May 2023 and May 2024, approximately 35 suspicious packages were allegedly delivered to Mr. Menjivar's address. The shipments - at least one of which was allegedly sent by a known international firearms supplier - were manifested as various items, including household tools, protective gloves, glass cups, hats, and clothing, and were addressed to various fictitious individuals.

On June 10, ATF agents collected trash placed in a bin outside Mr. Menjivar's home. Inside, they allegedly found a non-value gold metal commemorative bitcoin, an item often used to conceal switches by confusing x-ray machines and packaging consistent with illicit firearms shipments.

On June 20, agents executed a search warrant on Mr. Menjivar's residence, where they allegedly found a privately made firearm, also known as a "ghost gun," equipped with a switch, five additional switches, 72 rounds of assorted ammunition, two commemorative bitcoins, and various firearm accessories. In an interview, Mr. Menjivar allegedly asserted that anything illegal found in the residence, including the switches, belonged to him and affirmed that he knew how switches work.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives' Dallas Field Division, Homeland Security Investigations' Dallas Field Office, the Dallas Police Department, the Rockwall County Sheriff's Department, and U.S. Customs & Border Patrol conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert Withers is prosecuting the case.

The case is part of "Operation Texas Kill Switch," a statewide initiative taking aim at machinegun conversion devices, which transform commercially available semi-automatic firearms into fully-automatic weapons capable of firing faster than military-grade machine guns. Spearheaded by U.S. Attorneys Leigha Simonton, Alamdar Hamdani, Damien Diggs and Jaime Esparza, Operation Texas Kill Switch relies on partnerships with state and local law enforcement as well as rewards offered by Crime Stoppers.