United States Attorney Lesley A. Woods announced that on September 30, 2026, Brian Baldonado-Belmontes, 24, a Mexican man unlawfully in the United States, was sentenced to 30 months in prison for unlawfully possessing a firearm. Because Baldonado-Belmontes is a citizen of Mexico and was unlawfully in the United States, it was illegal for him to possess a firearm.
On March 22, 2026, the Omaha Police Department monitored a social media account belonging to a juvenile, which appeared to show the juvenile discharging a rifle in Omaha. After officers discovered the area of the shooting, they found approximately 23 spent .22 caliber cartridge cases and two live .22 caliber rounds. They also found a truck that had been struck by bullets about six times. While officers were processing the scene, Baldonado-Belmontes approached officers and admitted that he shot the truck. He later admitted that he shot the truck while riding as a passenger in the juvenile’s vehicle. He advised officers that the firearm was at his residence in Bellevue. Officers went to the residence and recovered the firearm, which was a Smith and Wesson, M&P 15-22, .22 caliber rifle. Attached to the rifle was a magazine, marked for 25 round capacity of .22LR ammunition.Just a few feet from the rifle, officers located an extended magazine for 9 mm ammunition.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Omaha Police Department, and the Bellevue Police Department.
Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office — Nebraska — U.S. Department of Justice press release.