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Operation White Gun is the name of an operation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) which has come under scrutiny for possible mismanagement and possible gunwalking. Background The operation came to light during investigations into the investigations into Operation Fast and Furious. internal ATF documents, such as debriefing summaries and border task force overviews, indicate that White Gun and Fast and Furious both began in the fall of 2009,and both cases were run by the same ATF officials. The operation revolved around Guzman Patino who was attempting to procure arms for the Sinaloa gang, the ATF reports also stated that "White Gun" was aimed at the nine leaders of the Sinaloa cartel, including Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. One source close to the investigation led by Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa)and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista) said : "Apparently guns got away again". "How many ended up in Mexico ? Nobody knows". the source said. Reports indicate that in 2010, agent Hope A. MacAllister, involved in "Fast and Furious", traveled to Mexico City looking to retrieve evidence of the U.S. weapons that had been siezed by federal authorities in crime scenes. Although the ATF records don't specify what it was that agent MacAllister found in Mexico, it says that they "found weapons in military custody were linked to their research." Agent MacAllister said according to intelligence reports that the Sinaloa cartel held a training camp in the Sierra de Durango, near the hideout of El Chapo Guzman Loera, and that his criminal group sought to strengthen its arsenal with grenade launchers and .50-caliber machine guns. A member of that cartel identified as Vicente Fernando Guzman Patino, contacted undercover agents from the ATF with the intention to buy weapons, to whom he bragged about having $ 15 million just to spend in weapons. In fall 2009, an ATF team sent an undercover agent posing as an arms dealer to Guzman Patino and Photos of weapons, including a Dragon Fire 120-millimeter heavy mortar, were emailed to his "Superman6950" Hotmail account. According to ATF documents, Guzman Patino told to the undercover agent that "if he would bring them a tank, they would buy it" After that meeting, Patino Guzman and the agent met again outside the restaurant in Phoenix, where the undercover seller showed the criminal five weapons in the trunk of his car , including a Ramo .50 heavy machine gun and a Bushmaster rifle The undercover agent said he could get that kind of firepower for the Sinaloa Cartel. Just as Guzman Patino seemed ready to buy, ATF records reveal that the investigation into his activities suddenly ended. The documents do not show why, and they don't indicate whether he obtained any weapons.
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