Ammunition Theft Scandal: Marine Charged with Stealing Weapons from Camp Pendleton
A shocking case has emerged involving a U.S. Marine who allegedly misused his position to steal military ammunition and weapons. Cpl. Andrew Paul Amarillas, stationed at California’s Camp Pendleton, faces charges of theft and embezzlement, including the illegal acquisition of a shoulder-fired missile system.
Amarillas, an ammunition specialist, appeared in a Phoenix court last Thursday where he pleaded not guilty to several charges, including conspiracy to commit theft and possession of stolen military assets. Detained until trial, his legal defense has yet to publicly comment on the case.
According to federal prosecutors, Amarillas leveraged his role at the School of Infantry West to pilfer a Javelin missile system and thousands of rounds of ammunition between February 2022 and November 2025. It is alleged that he transported the stolen munitions to Arizona, where they were sold to unnamed accomplices who further distributed them.
While some stolen items have been recovered, the full extent of the theft remains unclear. Among the items recovered were munitions purchased by undercover officers from Amarillas’s co-conspirators.
Court documents revealed a co-conspirator’s phone saved Amarillas’s number as “Andrew Ammo.” In August, Amarillas allegedly sent a text offering launchers for sale, accompanied by photographs, including one of a Javelin missile system with a serial number linked to Camp Pendleton.
The criminal complaint filed in Arizona’s U.S. District Court states, “The objects of the conspiracy were to steal property and ammunition from the U.S. military and sell stolen U.S. military property and ammunition to others to earn money.”
In a related incident, military explosives vanished from the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms in 2021. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is investigating, though details remain scarce.
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