Houston gun dealer convicted of assisting illegal firearms trafficking

HOUSTON - A 44 year-old Cypress resident has entered a guilty plea to aiding and abetting engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

Nicah Anderson was a federal firearms licensee and former majority owner and operator of NE Guns.

Between December 2022 and March 2023, an individual arranged the purchases of at least 41 firearms from NE Guns. However, that person never personally purchased the guns, but instead had straw purchasers actually obtain the guns. The individual then carried the guns out of NE Guns and quickly resold them. Anderson knew about the resales prior to the arrangement of the purchases.

Some of the firearms included Barret .50 caliber, military-grade sniper rifles; FN SCAR 17S, .308 caliber rifles and 9 millimeter pistols. These guns are known weapons of choice for Mexican drug cartels.

Law enforcement executed a search warrant at NE Guns July 19, 2023. Among other things, they seized 266 firearms, 138,940 rounds of ammunition, seven silencers and NE Guns' business records. The investigation found that between October 2022 and August 2023, NE Guns received $115,000 from purchases suspected straw purchasers had made.

"Weapons of war, including a .50 caliber gun, walked out of Nicah Anderson's gun store in the arms of straw purchasers, and he knew it," said Hamdani. "Investigations such as these stop illegal firearms trafficking at the source. Because of gun violence in large cities like Houston, there is absolutely no place or patience for gun dealers like Anderson who seek to profit from illegal straw purchases."

"This investigation is a clear illustration of the importance of investigating illegal firearms trafficking," said Special Agent in Charge Michael Wedell of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). "Firearms trafficking is a direct contributor to the gun violence that we fight every day. This defendant chose profit over helping to maintain the safety of the general public and will be held accountable for those repeated decisions."

U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison accepted the plea and set sentencing for Oct. 24. As part of his plea agreement, Anderson is expected to serve a two-year prison sentence. Anderson was permitted to remain on bond pending sentencing.

ATF conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kate Suh and John Ganz prosecuted the case.