JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville man accused of packing firearms in futon has pleaded guilty to charges of attempting engaging in a murder for hire and smuggling, according to the Department of Justice.
Antonio Jose Melean Reyes, 29, pleaded guilty to smuggling firearms from the U.S. and conspiracy to use a facility of interstate commerce in the commission of a murder-for-hire. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for each offense and sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to the Department of Justice, Reyes attempted to smuggle three firearms and 57 rounds of ammunition from Jacksonville to Venezuela on May 15, 2021. He concealed the firearms and ammunition in a futon that he attempted to mail. Employees from the freight service observed the firearms during a routine X-ray of the parcel carrying the futon and contacted law enforcement. Homeland Security Investigations seized the weapons eight days later, the release said.
Reyes was arrested on unrelated charges on Aug. 11, 2023, as federal agents searched his cellphone and found conversations between Reyes and another individual discussing trafficking firearms to Venezuela, the release said.
From Reyes’s phone, agents learned Reyes and others were involved in a murder-for-hire plot, the release said.
Between July 12-Aug. 9, 2023, Reyes and others surveilled two intended victims to murder them based on a $60,000 debt, following the two people to various locations around Jacksonville, including outside their home. Reyes attempted to hire a hitman for $15,000, but federal agents arrested Reyes on a criminal complaint, according to the DOJ.
Reyes faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for each offense and sentencing date has not yet been set.
