DALLAS — A Dallas man alleged to have dealt Glock switches through Instagram has been indicted on two counts of unregistered firearm possession, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas announced.
The suspect, 22-year-old Jeremiah Dwyen Ashley, was indicted on Dec. 28. Switches are devices which convert regular pistols into fully-automatic machine guns.
“Switches transform regular pistols into weapons of war, only suitable for use by soldiers on the battlefield,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton in a statement. “We cannot and will not allow switches to proliferate on the streets of north Texas.”
Officials said law enforcement reached out to Ashley after finding an advertisement for Glock switches on his Instagram account to make an undercover purchase.
An undercover officer later met Ashley in May at a gas station in Garland and bought three Glock switches for $1,200, officials said, and Ashley showed the officer how to install a switch onto a pistol.
The officer soon reached out to make a second purchase from Ashley after confirming his identity, officials said, and law enforcement then seized three packages from a UPS distribution center in June, where they found 30 Glock switches, surrounded by metal screws to obscure the contents of the package.
Officials said an undercover officer then posed as a delivery person and delivered the packages to Ashley on June 14, and moments later executed a search warrant on his apartment.
During the search, officials said Ashley allegedly admitted he knew the packages contained switches and confirmed he understood their purpose.
“Nothing keeps me up at night more than the thought of a machinegun in the wrong hands. If not promptly investigated and arrested, Mr. Ashley would have continued to put these tools of violence on our streets. Citizens of North Texas need to know that ATF and all our law enforcement partners are doing everything we can to prevent machinegun conversion devices from being used and sold unlawfully. These are not toys or souvenirs; these are terrifying,” ATF Dallas Field Division Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey C. Boshek II said in a statement.
If convicted, Ashley faces up to 20 years in prison.