Two Chicago men are facing federal charges following an undercover investigation that targeted illegal firearms and cocaine trafficking in the city, according to criminal complaints filed this week in Chicago.
Erik Ocampo, who is accused of selling seven firearms and a Glock “switch” device capable of converting a semi-automatic pistol into a fully automatic machinegun, was charged with illegally possessing a machinegun. His alleged associate, Gerardo Ibarra, is charged with conspiring to distribute cocaine.
According to the complaints, signed by an agent of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Ocampo and Ibarra worked together between March 19 and June 5 of this year to sell firearms and narcotics to undercover federal agents posing as buyers.
Court documents state that Ocampo was the central figure in arranging multiple deals with the undercover agents, often conducted through phone and text communications. In one instance on March 19, Ocampo allegedly arranged the sale of three AR-style pistols and an AR-style short-barrel rifle to an undercover agent for $6,000. Ibarra delivered the weapons and collected payment from the agent, according to the complaints…