A Brazilian national living in Milford without legal status has been sentenced for selling firearms and ammunition without a license. Vanderson Rocha Oliveira, 31, received a three-year prison sentence followed by two years of supervised release from U.S. District Judge Margaret R. Guzman on October 7, 2025. Upon completion of his sentence, Rocha Oliveira faces deportation.
Rocha Oliveira pleaded guilty in July 2025 to one count of conspiracy to engage in the business of dealing firearms without a license and one count of engaging in the business of dealing firearms without a license.
Authorities reported that between March and September 2024, Rocha Oliveira sold 11 firearms to cooperating witnesses despite not having the required federal license. Law enforcement also intercepted three additional firearms shipped from Florida as part of the scheme. Investigators found that Rocha Oliveira conspired with others to deliver these weapons and obtain them from Florida sources. Alongside the firearms, he sold ammunition and magazines, including some large capacity magazines.
“United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; and Patricia H. Hyde, Acting Field Office Director, Boston, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations; and Ketty Larco-Ward, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Boston Division made the announcement.”
The Massachusetts State Police and Milford Police Department provided assistance during the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael J. Crowley and John Reynolds from the Organized Crime & Gang Unit prosecuted the case.
