Hayward resident sentenced to over five years in prison for selling firearms and prescription drugs
Defendant used his social media account to post photographs in effort to peddle illegal wares
OAKLAND, Calif. – Marcos Anthony Hatch was sentenced Friday, August 3, 2018, to 63 months in prison for dealing in firearms and prescription medications without a license and related charges, announced United States Attorney Alex G. Tse, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Special Agent in Charge Jill Snyder, and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Chris Nielsen. The sentence was handed down by the Honorable Jon S. Tigar after Hatch pleaded guilty to the charges.
Hatch, 21, of Hayward, pleaded guilty on December 15, 2017. According to his plea agreement, between January and May of 2017, he operated a social media account on which he posted photographs of prescription drugs, marijuana, and guns for sale. Hatch admitted that he never obtained a license to sell firearms and never had any privileges to prescribe controlled substances. Nevertheless, Hatch acknowledged that he engaged in the repetitive purchase and resale of firearms for profit. Hatch further admitted he sold at least three guns to individuals he knew, or had reason to believe, could not lawfully possess firearms.
On May 16, 2017, federal agents searched Hatch’s home and found $59,000 in cash, marijuana, a Glock 32 .357 caliber pistol with replacement barrel, four other firearms, and 40 pills of alprazolam (commonly known as Xanax). In his plea, Hatch admitted he intended to distribute the alprazolam, that the Glock had been modified to function as a fully automatic machine gun.
On July 25, 2017, a federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment charging Hatch with one count each of conspiracy to deal in firearms without a license; possession of an unregistered firearm; dealing firearms without a license; possession with intent to distribute alprazolam; and advertisement of a controlled substance on the internet. Hatch pleaded guilty to all the counts except the conspiracy and advertisement charges, which were dismissed.
In addition to the prison term, Judge Tigar sentenced the defendant to a three-year period of supervised release. The defendant has been in custody since June 2018 and will begin serving the sentence immediately.
The prosecution is the result of a joint investigation by the DEA Tactical Diversion Squad and the ATF.
