A Kansas City-area man was sentenced Thursday to over eight years in prison for stealing firearms and transporting child pornography to the U.S. from Mexico.

Olathe resident Frank Guereca, 24, broke into a federally licensed firearms dealer in June 2023 in Raytown, Missouri, a Kansas City suburb. Guereca and two others drove a stolen U-Haul into the gun store to create a hole so they could enter and steal 41 guns.

All the stolen guns were pistols, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri, and two of them were recovered later in 2023 – one in California and the other in Mexico. Another stolen pistol was found in Mexico in February 2024.

Guereca crossed the U.S.-Mexico border around 20 times between the crime in June 2023 and his arrest in April 2024, U.S. Customs and Border Protection records show.

“Mexican organized crime groups use firearms to commit heinous crimes against civilians and rival criminal groups,” Special Agent in Charge of Kansas City’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Bernard Hanses said in a press release.

“There is no safe hiding place for anyone engaged in illegal firearms trafficking to Mexico.”

Guereca was arrested on April 25, 2024 after attempting to get back into the U.S. from Mexico. Officers seized a Samsung Galaxy cell phone that was in his possession at the time of his arrest.

An investigation of the phone revealed Guereca was transporting more than 250 images and 70 videos of child pornography from Mexico into the U.S.

“Unlawful firearms trafficking is not a victimless crime,” previous ATF Director Steven Dettelbach said in another press release. “Guns trafficked to Mexico often end up in the hands of violent cartels that use them to hurt people and commit crimes.”

Guereca pled guilty last fall to one count of stealing firearms from a federal firearms licensee and one count of transportation of child pornography. He was sentenced on Thursday to over 8 years in prison without parole.