Female Fort Carson Veteran Gets 3 Years For Gun Smuggling

DENVER – A former Fort Carson soldier will serve three years in federal prison after being convicted of smuggling handguns into the Dominican Republic.

Katherine O'Neal, 43, was sentenced Aug. 30 by U.S. District Court Judge William J. Martinez to serve 36 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years on supervised release, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

O'Neal was indicted multiple times by federal grand juries in Sept. 2015, Nov. 2016 and Dec. 2017. She was accused of multiple trips to the Dominican Republic where she allegedly brought handguns in her luggage, which she sold in the Caribbean nation. Importing firearms is illegal in the Dominican Republic.

A jury found O’Neal guilty on March 6, 2018. O'Neal was acquitted on other counts alleging false information on firearm purchase forms and money laundering, the U.S. Attorney's office said.

Prosecutors said that O'Neal made multiple trips to the Dominican Republic shortly after buying guns in Denver and Colorado Springs, including one trip where she flew from Denver to the Dominican Republic with 11 firearms in her luggage in early June 2015. According to prosecutors, she "declared the firearms to the airline, but did not obtain the required State Department export license." Dominican Republic officials caught the guns in her baggage and arrested her.

“Illegally exporting firearms comes with stiff consequences,” said U.S. Attorney Bob Troyer in a statement. “Her consequence was 3 years in federal prison.”

The case was investigated by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Charges are pending to extradite her to the Dominican Republic.

Image via Shutterstock

Stay up-to-date on Colorado Springs news with Patch! There are many ways for you to connect and stay in touch: Newsletters and Email Alerts|Facebook