Former U.S. firearms investigator illegally trafficked guns to Mexico, government document...

A former investigator for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is accused of smuggling guns into Mexico while employed by the agency in 2017, according to a letter sent to ATF’s head this week by U.S. Senator Charles Grassley.

Jose Luis Meneses, a Mexican national who worked as an investigator for ATF at the U.S. Consulate in Tijuana, admitted to buying firearm parts online and at a California gun store and trafficking them into Mexico for profit back in 2017, according to the letter and an ATF memo from the time obtained by Reuters.

The case has not been previously reported.

The trafficking of U.S. weapons south across the border is a top diplomatic issue in Mexico. Mexican officials accuse their American counterparts of not doing enough to stanch the illegal flow of these guns, which they say help arm drug cartels and contribute to the country’s high homicide rate.

Nearly 70% of traced firearms used to commit crimes and seized in Mexico come from the United States, according to ATF.

The Grassley letter dated Oct. 18, which cites the 2017 ATF memo and information described as “whistleblower disclosures,” accused the agency of not conducting a full investigation into the matter.