A man from the Portneuf region who operated an underground firearms sales business from his home was sentenced Friday to four years in detention. It was a sale made to two undercover agents that led to his downfall.

• Read also: Portneuf: 33 firearms seized in two residences

Louis Tessier was arrested in November 2022 following an investigation by the Sûreté du Québec which resulted in an undercover operation.

Two agents went to the man's home, in Saint-Marc-des-Carrières, to buy weapons.

“They mentioned wanting weapons that would ensure they would not be found, not traceable,” Judge Steve Magnan said Friday. “Two types of weapons are offered to them, one with restricted authorization and the other prohibited.”

Probably wanting to provide outstanding customer service to its two customers, Tessier went so far as to offer them the opportunity to test the merchandise before purchasing it. The man therefore accompanied the two agents to a field and made them shoot the two weapons chosen.

Thirty weapons

A warrant was obtained the same day and the police searched the residence of Louis Tessier, as well as a second home in Saint-Thuribe.

In total, 33 firearms, magazines and thousands of various ammunition were seized, explained the SQ at the end of the operation. The accounting statements of the “company” and even the professional cards found in the house reinforce the police hypothesis.

“Monsieur justified himself by saying that it was to accommodate the hunters, but it must be admitted that the day before, with the undercover agents, these were not people who wanted to hunt,” explained the crown prosecutor, Me Matthieu Rochette, recalling that the two false clients insisted on the fact that the weapons were not traceable, suggesting that they could be used for illicit acts.

Common suggestion

The sentence of four years of detention stems from a common suggestion of the parties. The public prosecutor explained that the individual's lack of history in similar cases as well as his collaboration during the investigation had led to this agreement.

Judge Steve Magnan endorsed the proposal, but reminded Louis Tessier of the seriousness of his actions.

“Thankfully, this time these weapons did not fall into the hands of people who could have misused them to commit a crime. But we could not ignore the risk that it would end up in the hands of criminals,” underlined the magistrate.

As he has been detained since his arrest, which amounts to a pre-trial detention of two years and ten days, the accused has just under two years of detention remaining to serve.