A United States Marine ammunition specialist stationed at Camp Pendleton in California faces federal charges for allegedly stealing military weapons and equipment, including a shoulder-fired missile launcher, and selling them across state lines.
Corporal Andrew Paul Amarillas entered a not guilty plea in Phoenix federal court last Thursday on multiple federal charges, including conspiracy to commit theft and embezzlement of government property, along with possession and sale of stolen military ammunition. The judge ruled that Amarillas will remain in jail while awaiting trial.
Attempts to reach Amarillas’ defense attorney and Camp Pendleton officials for comment were made Monday.
According to federal prosecutors, Amarillas exploited his role as a technical specialist at the School of Infantry West to unlawfully take at least one Javelin missile launcher, thousands of rounds of military ammunition, and additional weapons-related equipment during a period spanning from February 2022 through November 2025.
Authorities allege that Amarillas moved the stolen military equipment to Arizona, his home state, where he sold the items to unidentified accomplices who then distributed them to additional buyers. Law enforcement has recovered some, but not all, of the stolen weapons and ammunition.
Court records reveal that one accomplice stored Amarillas’ contact information in their phone under the alias “Andrew Ammo.”
“(I) have 2 launchers that (I) think you’d like, if you want to take a look tomorrow,” Amarillas wrote in a text message to an accomplice in August, according to the federal criminal complaint. The messages also contained photographs, including an image of a portable Javelin missile system bearing a serial number that corresponded to equipment Amarillas had officially checked out from the San Diego-area military installation, the complaint states.
Federal prosecutors noted that undercover law enforcement officers purchased some of the stolen ammunition from the accomplices.
“The objects of the conspiracy were to steal property and ammunition from the U.S. military and sell stolen U.S. military property and ammunition to others to earn money,” according to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court for Arizona.
This case follows a 2021 incident where explosives disappeared from the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center located in Twentynine Palms in Southern California’s desert region. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service confirmed they were investigating the missing explosives at that time but withheld specific details about the case.
