ATF reports major enforcement wins following 2025 shift in priorities
10K+ arrests, nearly 50K firearms seized from criminals since January 2025
WASHINGTON – The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) has recorded significant results since shifting its enforcement priorities in 2025 to refocus on violent crime, transnational criminal organizations, and illegal pipelines supplying them firearms. Since January 2025, the ATF has focused on dismantling cartel and gang networks, arresting in the process over 10,000 offenders and seizing more than 49,000 firearms and roughly 2.9 million rounds of ammunition and 31,000 illegal explosives from them. The results come in part through the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) effort, where ATF works alongside FBI, DEA, HSI, and hundreds of state and local partners and is currently active in more than 1,200 HSTF investigations. In Fiscal Year 2026 alone, HSTF activity involving ATF resulted in more than 1,300 arrests, 200 indictments, 380 convictions, 3,000 firearms seized, and more than $18 million in cash and monetary assets recovered.
“These results should serve as a warning to violent offenders who seek to break federal firearms law,” said ATF Director Rob Cekada. “ATF is aggressively targeting dangerous criminals, shutting down the illegal supply chains that arm cartels and gangs, and ensuring those who violate these laws are held accountable.”
In addition to the above, ATF has also handled nearly 950,000 firearm trace requests since January 2025, exceeding the agency’s average and showing the growing partnerships with law enforcement who rely on ATF to identify the source of firearms used in crimes. In total, nearly 11,000 law enforcement agencies now receive tracing services from ATF.
In calendar year 2025, ATF saw substantial increases in criminal referrals and charges compared to 2024. Referrals to the Department of Justice rose sharply across the six firearms‑related statutes, including straw purchasing, which increased 182%; trafficking, which rose 129%; and false statements under 18 U.S.C. 922(a)(6), which increased 135%. Overall, referrals across all six trafficking statutes climbed from 155% year over year. Criminal charges followed a similar trend, with charges across all six trafficking statutes increasing 57% year over year. Roughly a quarter of all ATF-initiated violent crime cases involve investigating firearms trafficking to Mexico.
Application Processing
ATF processed more NFA forms in calendar year 2026 than in all of 2025 and has significantly reduced processing times for key NFA forms since January 2025, including Form 4 (Legal Entities) dropping from 100 days to 25 days, Form 4 (Individual) dropping from 143 days to 8 days, and Form 10 dropping from 57 days to 6 days.
Combating Gangs and Transnational Criminal Organizations
ATF’s targeting of violent street gangs and transnational criminal organizations resulted in the arrests of members of multiple FTO-designated groups, including 49 Tren de Aragua members, 21 La Nueva Familia Michoacana members, 22 Sinaloa Cartel members, and 16 alleged Sureños members. Recent cases include:
- Colorado: ATF filed charges in August against 32 alleged Venezuelan TdA members for firearms trafficking, drug distribution, and conspiracy to commit murder for hire.
- New Mexico: ATF announced in December the federal indictment of 11 alleged TdA members on racketeering charges, including allegations of murder, kidnapping, drug trafficking, and illegal firearms possession, with convictions carrying the potential for life imprisonment.
- Illinois: ATF targeted alleged TdA-linked machinegun conversion device trafficking in the Chicago area in December resulting in the indictment of five defendants and the seizure of 73 firearms.
- California: ATF investigated the Puente 13 street gang and its alleged ties to the Mexican Mafia prison gang late last year, resulting in 18 arrests, 78 firearms seized, 15 pounds of methamphetamine, 30,000 fentanyl pills, and body armor.
Firearms Trafficking and Border Security
ATF’s firearms trafficking enforcement has focused on interdicting weapons before they reach cartel operatives and TCOs, particularly along the Southern Border. One long-term undercover operation targeting a major Sinaloa Cartel network led in November to the provisional arrest in Mexico of a high-value target linked to a firearms trafficking operation that allegedly sourced $12 to $14 million in high-caliber weapons, grenade launchers, and rocket-propelled grenades for the cartel. Similar cases in Texas, Virginia, and Florida resulted in indictments and seizures tied to firearms trafficking into Mexico and Canada.
Arson, Explosives, and Public Safety
ATF also responded to several major arson and explosives incidents recently, conducting a higher number of investigations during this period than average. In Tennessee, ATF’s National Response Team investigated a deadly explosion at an explosives manufacturing facility in McEwen, where an estimated 24,000 to 28,000 pounds of explosives detonated. In California an ATF investigation resulted in the federal indictment of a former Pacific Palisades resident alleged to have started the Palisades Fire, one of the most destructive wildfires in state history. In Illinois, a federal grand jury indicted an individual on terrorism and arson charges following two incidents: the alleged use of an incendiary device to ignite a passenger aboard a Chicago Transit Authority train, and an attempted arson at Chicago City Hall three days earlier.
ATF remains committed to protecting communities by relentlessly targeting the drivers of violent crime and disrupting the criminal networks that threaten public safety. The agency will continue working with its federal, state, local, and international partners to hold offenders accountable and safeguard lawful commerce in firearms and explosives.
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ATF protects American communities from violent crime driven by the illegal use of firearms, explosives, and acts of arson. Through crime gun intelligence, forensic analysis, and relentless investigation, we identify and arrest violent offenders and gang members, dismantle trafficking networks, and sever the supply chains arming cartels, prohibited persons, and terrorist organizations. We defend the rights of law-abiding citizens by safeguarding lawful commerce and upholding the Constitution of the United States. Learn more about what ATF is doing to reduce violent crime in your community by following us on X @ATFHQ, Instagram @ATFHQ, LinkedIn @ATF, and Facebook @HQATF, or on the web at www.atf.gov.
