Gilbert gun store owner accused of straw-purchasing military-grade rifles

PHOENIX — The owner of a Gilbert gun store was indicted on eight federal counts, accused of helping customers lie on firearms paperwork and failing to report large cash transactions, prosecutors said.

Gilbert resident Esteban Yanez, 34, was indicted April 8 in U.S. District Court in Phoenix.

Yanez owns Virtus Armament, a federally licensed firearms dealer. Prosecutors say he aided and abetted false statements on Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which buyers fill out before purchasing a firearm. Yanez allegedly did this as recently as February 2026.

In two of those transactions, according to the indictment, the firearms were purchased on behalf of a person who had been convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison, which bars someone from possessing a gun.

The weapons allegedly funneled a Barrett 82A1 .50-caliber BMG rifle to the person with the felony conviction in November 2025 and, in a separate February 2026 transaction, a second Barrett .50-caliber rifle and a Sig Sauer P365 9mm pistol. The Barrett is a powerful, long-range rifle used by the U.S. military to disable vehicles and equipment.

Yanez is also accused of failing to file IRS Form 8300, which requires businesses to report cash transactions exceeding $10,000. The indictment alleges he received more than $10,000 in cash on three separate occasions and never filed the required reports.

The government is seeking forfeiture of at least $263,905, which prosecutors say represents the money involved in the offenses.

If convicted, Yanez faces a maximum of five years in prison on each false-statement count, up to 15 years on each straw-purchasing count and up to 10 years on each failure-to-file count. Fines could reach $250,000 per count for the firearms charges and $500,000 per count for the cash-reporting charges.

The ATF investigated the case. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona is prosecuting.

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