A master sergeant at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada was indicted by a federal grand jury on Tuesday for allegedly trafficking firearms and illegal drugs.
The Justice Department announced Thursday that it charged 39-year-old Master Sgt. Michael Reimers, of Las Vegas, on two counts of distributing a controlled substance, one count of engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without a license, and one count of selling a firearm to a prohibited person.
The indictment alleges Reimers sold an unidentified amount of cocaine and more than 50 grams of methamphetamine from July 2019 to September 2019, the release said. Reimers is also accused of illegally selling an AK-47 7.62mm caliber rifle, a .25 caliber handgun, and a 12 gauge shotgun without a license, the release said. The Justice Department also said Reimers sold the shotgun to an illegal alien.
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Nellis spokesman Nick Janeway said that base law enforcement helped the Drug Enforcement Administration, which led the investigation, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and the nearby Henderson Police Department with Reimers’ arrest on Wednesday.
Janeway said Reimers is being held in pre-trial confinement, and was arraigned at the Lloyd D. George Federal Courthouse in Las Vegas.
Nicholas Trutanich, the U.S. attorney for the District of Nevada, announced the charges against Reimers.
Reimers is a 3D174 spectrum operations airman and a transmissions section chief in the 99th Communications Squadron at Nellis, according to releasable information provided by the Air Force Personnel Center. He joined the Air Force in 2000.
Justice’s release emphasized that the indictment is merely an allegation, and Reimers remains innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Stephen Losey is the air warfare reporter for Defense News. He previously covered leadership and personnel issues at Air Force Times, and the Pentagon, special operations and air warfare at Military.com. He has traveled to the Middle East to cover U.S. Air Force operations.
