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Undercover agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), arrested three men associated with the Sureño street gang after purchasing 15 firearms, 58 machine gun conversion devices, and cocaine in a five-month undercover operation.
Taken into custody in Portland were Cesar Daniel Arevalo (36) of Portland, and Jose Luis Brown Ceballos (35) and Jose Luis Diaz Ceballos (24) of Salem. They have been charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.
According to court documents, ATF undercover agents made multiple undercover purchases involving Arevalo and his associates from July to November 2025.
The Armed Men Were Arrested While Guarding an Undercover Drug Deal
On November 13, while armed, Arevalo, Brown Ceballos, Diaz Ceballos, and a minor guarded an undercover drug deal in Salem undertaken by ATF agents. They were arrested when the operation was completed, and four firearms were seized at the scene.
The ATF and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating the case, which is prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicole Bockelman.
The undercover operation formed part of the Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program, which involves all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve.
A violent crime reduction strategy was launched on May 26, 2021, to foster trust and legitimacy in communities, support community-based organizations that help prevent violence, and establish focused and strategic enforcement priorities.
For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, visit Justice.gov/PSN.
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