NEWARK, New Jersey— A US restaurant owner has been fined $3,000 for his role in a plot to sell firearms believed to have been owned by Saddam Hussein's family.
Fifty-eight-year-old Carlos Quirola-Ordonez had faced up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine after he pleaded guilty to conspiring to transport stolen firearms.
The investigation into the plot began in April 2012, when federal law enforcement officers learned of plans to sell the weapons.
Seven guns with an estimated value of $250,000 to $350,000 were seized in December 2012. Among the firearms was a .357 semi-automatic pistol featuring a gold medallion "QS." That's presumed to refer to the late Iraqi president's son Qusay.
Quirola-Ordonez and three other defendants pleaded guilty in the case.
