CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A South Carolina man got nearly four years in prison for mailing himself two handguns in St. Thomas, authorities said.
Steven Baxter, 36, of Orangeburg, South Carolina was sentenced today to 45 months and 17 days in prison for mailing the firearms here, U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert said.
Chief U.S. District Court Judge Molloy also sentenced Baxter to three years supervised release and ordered him to pay a $100 special assessment.
According to court documents, Baxter, then living in South Carolina, used the United States Postal Service (USPS) to mail two packages containing firearms to St. Thomas.
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) canine discovered the first firearm during routine inspection of incoming mail to St. Thomas. Two days later, a United States Postal Inspection officer discovered the second firearm while sorting mail inside the post office.
In all, two firearms — a 9 mm pistol and a .38 caliber handgun — were discovered in two separate packages, which were opened by Customs officers once alerted by the dog in March 2017. One weapon was found disassembled and wrapped in a sweater; the other was discovered upon opening a second Priority Mail parcel.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Everard E. Potter prosecuted the case.