Chicago-area nurse sentenced to 60 months in federal prison for illegally shipping firearms to the Philippines

CHICAGO — A registered nurse from Chicago’s western suburbs, who admitted purchasing and illegally shipping more than 30 weapons to the Philippines, was sentenced Tuesday to five years in federal prison.

This sentence was announced by Zachary T. Fardon, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and James Gibbons, acting special agent in charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Chicago.

Edwin N. Makasiar II, 44, of Lombard, Illinois, was sentenced June 30 by U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis.  Makasiar, a registered nurse, pleaded guilty in December to attempting to export defense articles without a license. Makasiar admitted in a plea agreement that he illegally exported at least 32 firearms to the Philippines from 2005 to 2012.  The illegally exported weapons included handguns and rifles.

"The illegal exportation of firearms is tantamount to breaching the border," Gibbons said. "The prosecution of weapons smugglers is an HSI priority as we work to interdict illegally trafficked guns and secure our nation’s borders in both directions."

Makasiar also admitted in his plea agreement that he filed a false report Aug. 17, 2012 with the Lombard Police Department after learning that two of the weapons would be inspected by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. In the report, Makasiar falsely stated that the two weapons had been stolen from him prior to their being shipped.

“Defendant’s conduct implicates the foreign policy and national security interests of the United States and threatens the safety of the Philippines by contributing to the proliferation of the small arms trade,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Fayhee argued in a government sentencing memorandum. “The illegal trafficking of firearms from the United States to the Philippines is a significant law enforcement problem.”