Texas Man Sentenced to Probation for Unlawful Possession of a Weapon in Edgewater, NJ

A Texas man who sold illegal guns in Edgewater NJ has been sentenced to 5 years of probation instead of prison time.

The 36-year-old defendant is a physical trainer in Lewisville, Texas. He was initially arrested in 2012 when police allegedly caught him attempting to sell six handguns to an undercover detective with the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotics Task Force.

According to police, the defendant tried to sell the illegal weapons for a total of $7,200.

An undercover detective with the task force set up a meeting with the defendant in Edgewater, NJ. When the defendant arrived at the scene, task force members stopped his vehicle. At that point, the defendant allegedly granted permission to police to search both his car and his temporary residence in Jersey City, New Jersey. Police reportedly found six unregistered handguns during the search.

The defendant was arrested and charged with a number of weapons offenses, including several counts of unlawful possession of a weapon.

It is believed that the defendant sold handguns in New York and New Jersey. According to authorities, the defendant trafficked the weapons between his home state of Texas and the Tri-State Area.

The defendant ultimately pleaded guilty to the weapons charges in Bergen County Superior Court in Hackensack, New Jersey.

At sentencing, a Bergen County superior court judge sentenced the defendant to 5 years of probation. The sentence came at the request of both the prosecutor and defense attorneys.

Although the defendant has avoided prison time, he will probably be deported to Ecuador as a result of the criminal conviction.

For additional information about this case, read the NJ.com article entitled “Man Illegally Selling Guns in Bergen County Gets Probation, Report Says.”