Camp Pendleton Marine Corporal Indicted for Three-Year Javelin Missile System Theft Operation
Source: Lockheed Martin
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Corporal Andrew Paul Amarillas, 23, of Glendale, Arizona, was indicted on federal charges after an investigation revealed he stole multiple Javelin anti-tank missile systems and millions of rounds of ammunition from the School of Infantry West at Camp Pendleton between February 2022 and November 2025. Amarillas sold the stolen weapons to civilian buyers in Arizona through two unnamed co-conspirators. He entered a not guilty plea on March 26, 2026. Amarillas was arrested on March 5 at Quantico while in the final phase of Marine Embassy Guard training, before he would have been posted to a US diplomatic facility overseas.
ANALYSIS
The Amarillas case stands as one of the most extensive documented instances of US military weapons diversion uncovered in the post-2020 era. The Javelin is a man-portable fire-and-forget anti-armor missile with a range of approximately 4,750 meters, and it is one of the most consequential weapon systems on the modern battlefield, having demonstrated decisive effects in Ukraine. Its theft for resale to domestic civilian buyers represents a severe proliferation risk. The indictment's reference to civilian buyers and companies in Arizona raises immediate questions about the end destination of systems that may no longer be in law enforcement custody.
The three-year duration of the scheme, from February 2022 through November 2025, suggests systemic inventory control failures at the School of Infantry West. The School of Infantry West trains entry-level Marines in combat arms and is a high-throughput institution with large volumes of weapons and ammunition under routine movement. The scale of ammunition described as millions of rounds compounds the security failure, indicating that physical security and audit protocols did not detect sustained systematic removal over multiple years.
The timing of Amarillas's arrest is operationally significant. He was apprehended at Quantico during Marine Embassy Guard School training, which would have placed him at a US embassy or consulate within weeks of his expected graduation. Embassy Guard Marines hold security clearances and operate in classified spaces. Whether Amarillas had been targeted for recruitment by a foreign intelligence service or whether his theft operation was purely profit-driven remains an open investigative question that the indictment does not resolve. The two unnamed co-conspirators represent unresolved threads whose connections and motives remain unknown.
The civilian buyer network in Arizona warrants separate federal investigation. Javelin systems acquired outside controlled military channels represent a potential domestic terrorism risk if they reach actors willing to use them against armored vehicles, protected infrastructure, or crowded venues. ATF and FBI coordination with the military investigation will be essential to tracing the full disposition of diverted systems.
