Man Charged With Shipping Straw Man Guns to Dominican Republic Is Freed on Bond in SDNY

Man Charged With Shipping Straw Man Guns to Dominican Republic Is Freed on Bond in SDNY by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack SDNY COURTHOUSE, May 19 – A defendant charged with buy guns in Pennsylvania via a straw man and shipping them to the Dominican Republic had a bail hearing on May 19 in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Magistrates Court. Inner City Press was there, in the back row, and live tweeted: Magistrate Judge Robert W. Lehrburger: Counsel, are you retained? Defense: Yes. Judge Lehrburger: Let's hear argument on detention or bail. AUSA: The defendant was sending guns to the Dominican Republic, in boxes with cooking oil. He acquired them through a straw purchaser AUSA: He kept 1 of the guns in his apartment. So being detained in that apartment would not stop him. He is a citizen of the Dominican Republic and maintains contacts there.  Judge Lehrburger: Is there a presumption or not?  AUSA: There is not. Defense: Release him  Defense: The police interviewed him in January - after that he didn't flee. He is a US citizen - he has been in the US for ten years. He is a barber. We have five co-signers, his family in the audience [Inner City Press was told by Deputy to move to back row]  Defense: They are nurses, auto repair - he is 35, he understands he has a duty to return to court and that there may be restrictions. I emailed a bail package to the court [Inner City Press ongoing question: will that be docketed? It's a judicial document]  Judge Lehrburger: Who does he live with currently? Defense: His wife and children, his parents are in the same building. AUSA: He is a risk of flight.  Judge Lerhburger: It is the government's burden. There is no past unlawful conduct. He is employed  Judge Lehrburger: He is living with his significant other, and children two and ten, no, two and eight. Yes, he could reengage in this conduct. But I believe there are conditions for release. I am going to release him. $150,000 unsecured personal recognizance bond Judge Lehrburger: 3 co-signers. Home detention, he will be allowed to leave home to work and for other purposes. No communication with co-defendant(s) without the presence of counsel. The case is USA v. Gomez, et al., 1:26-mj-1854 (Lehrburger) *** Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron. Feedback: Editorial [at] innercitypress.com Mail: Box 130222, Chinatown Station, NY NY 10013 Other, earlier Inner City Press are listed here, and some are available in the ProQuest service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.  Copyright 2006-2026 Inner City Press, Inc. To request reprint or other permission, e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com