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Eduardo Velasquez, 62, of Reading, PA, was brought into federal court in Newark earlier today for an initial hearing on gun trafficking charges. A judge ordered that he remain held without bail.
Velasquez was arrested last Thursday after bringing a confidential informant a Smith and Wesson SW99 .40 caliber handgun, a Taurus PT9l 7 CS 9 rnm scmiautomatic pistol, a Desert Eagle .44 caliber semi-automatic pistol, a Mossberg 16-gauge shotgun and a Norinco SKS 7.62 x 39 mm rifle, according to an FBI complaint.
Velasquez received $9,000 in exchange for the 11 total weapons sold, according to the complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Newark.
U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, as well as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office and both the Jersey City and Newark police departments.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Rahul Agarwal of the U.S. Attorney’s Office General Crimes Unit in Newark is prosecuting.
Other weapons the FBI said Velasquez sold include:
Smith & Wesson .4l caliber revolver
Maverick Mossberg Model 88 shotgun
Ruger 9 mm semi-automatic handgun (reported stolen)
Winchester Model I300 12-gauge shotgun
SKS 7.52 x 39 mm rifle
They said he also sold high-capicity magazines and dozens of rounds of ammunition — including hollow-point bullets.
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