Man pleads guilty to illegal firearms despite claims of self-defense against stray dogs

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - An illegal resident pleaded guilty to owning firearms seized during a 2024 search of his home.

Ernesto Daniel Rodriguez-De la Cruz entered his guilty plea in federal court yesterday.

In 2024, special agent with the National highway Traffic Safety Administration applied for a search warrant of the home of Rodriguez-De la Cruz in Potter County.

The agent presented probable cause that Rodriguez-De la Cruz and his family in New Mexico were involved in selling vehicles that had the odometers rolled back. The search warrant was granted on those grounds.

The search warrant was executed in a multi-agency effort in July 2024.

The agencies included the Texas Department of Public Safety, Homeland Security Investigations, NHTSA and Potter County Sheriff’s Office.

Only two people were present at at the home when agents executed the search warrant: Rodriguez-De la Cruz and his son.

During the search of the home, the following firearms were found:

• Kimber 9mm handgun (reported stolen out of Albuquerque, NM)
• Springfield, XD, 9mm handgun
• Ruger, Mini 14 .223 rifle
• Mossberg, model 188, 12-gauge shotgun

Rodriguez-De la Cruz declined to speak with agents as the search was carried out.

However, when agents told him about the firearms they seized, Rodriguez-De la Cruz told them they were to protect his family and pets from stray dogs in the area.

He also asked the agents how he would protect his family and pets from the stray dogs without firearms.

Court documents state that at the time of the search warrant, Rodriguez-De la Cruz was “an alien illegally and unlawfully in the United States”.

In October 2025, a federal grand jury voted to indict Rodriguez-De la Cruz for violating federal law as an illegal alien in possession of firearms.

Rodriguez-De la Cruz is currently in federal custody at Randall County Jail. His sentencing will be scheduled for a later date.