Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

SAN DIEGO – Today, Noe Lugo, aka No-No, a Vista Home Boy Gang Member and prior convicted felon, was sentenced to 200 months in custody after being convicted of gun trafficking and of being a felon-in-possession of firearms.

In mid-2016, law enforcement began focusing their efforts on targeting gun trafficking activities in San Diego’s North County.  Through the course of the investigation, law enforcement identified Noe Lugo, who goes by the moniker “No-No,” as a source of firearms.  With the assistance of a confidential informant (“CI”), law enforcement then purchased several firearms from Lugo over the course of approximately two months.

During September and October 2016, Lugo sold the CI seven firearms, including:  a Colt .380 caliber handgun; a Heckler & Koch .45 caliber handgun; a Berretta 9mm handgun; a Glock 17 9mm handgun, a Harrington & Richardson 732 revolver, a Smith & Wesson M&P 15, an AR-10 rifle, and multiple calibers of ammunition.  Lugo had additional firearms available and had made arrangements to sell even more. 

After a multi-day trial, on December 1, 2016, a jury found Lugo guilty of gun trafficking and being a felon in possession of firearms.

At the sentencing today, District Court Judge John A. Houston sentenced Lugo to 200 months in custody.  According to Court filings, Lugo engaged in the illegal trafficking of firearms with children present, sold firearms to other gang members within and outside of his own gang, admitted shooting a rival gang member, and made chilling statements about killing law enforcement. 

Lugo’s sentence included enhancements because one of the firearms contained a high capacity magazine, some of the firearms were stolen, and Lugo possessed the firearms in connection with another felony offense, namely, marijuana trafficking.

“Noe Lugo operated in the black market where high-powered firearms are illegally exchanged among violent gang members.  He was a menace to our communities and a genuine threat to law enforcement,” commented U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman.  “Thanks to the tremendous collaborative efforts of the North County Regional Gang Task Force, this defendant will no longer endanger the public’s safety.”

John A. Brown, Special Agent In Charge, San Diego Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation applauded today's sentence of Lugo as indicative of the positive impact the North County Gang Task Force is having on the communities of Northern San Diego County. "Operation No Worries is proof positive of how cooperative investigation with our law enforcement partners can destroy criminal organizations, remove dangerous criminals and drugs from our streets, and restore neighborhoods. Whether the crimes involve human trafficking, illegal drug or gun sales, or violent crime, the FBI will continue to invest in our relationships with our partner agencies, focus our investigative efforts and resources, and stand shoulder-to-shoulder against those groups who would erode communities through illegal enterprises."

“ATF reduces violent crime by partnering with other law enforcement and being part of task forces which identify, investigate, and arrest those who illegally supply firearms to prohibited individuals,” said ATF Los Angeles Field Division Special Agent in Charge Bill McMullan. “This collaboration of resources resulted in a significant and much deserved prison sentence for a criminal who was removed from our community, making for safer neighborhoods.”

This case is the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership that brings together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, dismantle and prosecute high-level members of drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and enterprises.

DEFENDANTS                                            Case Number 17CR0482-JAH                               

Noe Renee Lugo                                             Age: 34                                   Vista, CA

SUMMARY OF CHARGES

Count 1:          Dealing in Firearms Without a License, 18 U.S.C. § 922 (a)(1)(A)

                        Maximum Penalty – 5 years’ imprisonment

Counts 2-5:      Felon in Possession of a Firearm, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)

                        Maximum Penalty – 10 years’ imprisonment per count

AGENCIES

North County Regional Gang Task Force, which includes the Federal Bureau of Investigation, San Diego County Sheriff's Office, Oceanside Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Bureau of Prisons, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Marshals Service, California Highway Patrol, and the Escondido and Carlsbad Police Departments, San Diego County District Attorney’s Office.

###