Margate Man Sentenced to 33 Months for Firearms Violations Amid Troubling Criminal History

Robert Mondragon {BSO}

A Margate man has been sentenced to 33 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for making false statements during a firearm purchase and illegally possessing a firearm.

According to court documents, Robert Zildjian Mondragon, 31, falsely claimed on an ATF Firearms Transaction Record on June 18, 2019, that he was not an unlawful user of marijuana.

This false statement was made in connection with the attempted purchase of a Radical Arms rifle in Miami. The form clearly stated that marijuana use remains a federal violation, regardless of state laws. Mondragon had a history of illegal marijuana use, which undermined the legality of the firearm transaction.

Further investigation revealed that Mondragon was photographed with another firearm on November 14, 2021, and his phone contained references to marijuana use on 71 different days the previous year.

Mondragon’s criminal history extends beyond these firearm violations. In 2022, Margate Talk reported Mondragoon’s arrest for allegedly exposing himself and masturbating in front of a woman outside a gym—then biting a police officer’s finger.

That same year, he was arrested on multiple charges for leaving dead animals in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Memorial Garden. Authorities said he had a “disturbing fascination with mass school shootings.”

This prosecution is part of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) program, which focuses on reducing violent crime through a collaborative approach involving law enforcement and community stakeholders.

The program aims to identify and address the most pressing violent crime issues in the community, targeting the most violent offenders and partnering with local prevention and reentry programs to enhance public safety.

Got News in Margate? Send it to Margate Talk. Don’t Miss Reading NW Broward County’s #1 News Sites: Coconut Creek Talk, Coral Springs Talk, Parkland Talk, and Tamarac Talk.