PHOENIX (AP) -- A man who bought two rifles found at the scene of the fatal shooting of a federal agent near the Arizona-Mexico border pleaded guilty Thursday to two felony charges in the federal government's botched gun smuggling investigation known as Operation Fast and Furious.
Authorities say 25-year-old Jaime Avila Jr. was a member of a 20-person ring accused of buying guns and smuggling them into Mexico for use by the Sinaloa drug cartel.
Two AK-47 variants bought by Avila from a suburban Phoenix gun store were found after a 2010 shootout that mortally wounded Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry near Nogales.
Avila faces up to 10 years in prison. A sentencing hearing is set for June 25.
Two other members of the ring also pleaded guilty Thursday.
