FLORIDA, USA (CMC) — A United States judge has sentenced a 29-year-old man to 10 months in prison for conspiracy to smuggle arms to Dominica two years ago.

US District Judge Susan Bucklew imposed the sentence on Edger Edmund Francis after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to smuggle goods from the United States.

Dominica police had in October 2016, said they had intercepted a shipment of guns and ammunition that were discovered at the bottom of a barrel containing groceries and imported from the United States on September 30.

The Dominica police said that local law enforcement authorities were alerted by their US counterparts.

“A barrel containing grocery items originated from the United States. A search of the contents of that barrel was conducted by members of the Drug Squad in the presence of the Customs and Excise Authority and Port Authority.

“The following were found in the bottom of the barrel: five Taurus pistols, one Kel tec pistol, five Taurus revolvers, one Rossi revolver,” Police Commissioner Daniel Carbon said then, adding that the authorities also discovered more than 800 rounds of ammunition, magazines and a stun gun.

According to the court documents, on September 22, 2016, Francis rented a U-Haul truck and drove it from Tampa to a shipping company in Riviera Beach, Florida.

In Riviera Beach, Francis arranged to ship a barrel containing three handguns and hundreds of rounds of ammunition, concealed among various household goods. The barrel was destined for Roseau, Dominica, and records showed that Francis had bought the household items from a store in Tampa, just before making the trip.

Francis, who pleaded guilty on April 23, 2018, never applied for, or received, an export licence or other written prior approval to ship the guns or ammunition outside of the United States.

“This case is an example of HSI’s dedication to stopping smuggled weapons before they fall into the hands of criminals who pose a threat to public safety both here and abroad,” said Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge James C Spero.

The authorities said that this case was investigated by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, including its attaché in the Caribbean, with assistance from the Dominica Police Force.