CALGARY -- Crossing the Coutts border with a pick-up packed with firearms has earned an American man some Canadian hospitality -- a three-year prison term.

George Foster, 54, pleaded guilty to four criminal and two smuggling-related charges under the Customs Act in Lethbridge Provincial Court on Tuesday in what was the largest gun seizure in the 126-year history of the Coutts border crossing.

The charges stem from a Feb. 21 incident where the Florida resident pulled up at the crossing at Sweetgrass, Mont., saying he was on his way to Alaska.

He said he had no firearms, but officers who conducted a search of his Chevy found 75 guns, including 48 handguns, four of which were loaded.

Among the cache they also found a blowgun, one pistol crossbow, and 12 high-capacity magazines hidden inside his pickup truck.

The Coutts border crossing, which opened in 1886, sees about 1,690 travellers in about 620 vehicles per day.
Coutts is located about 330 km southeast of Calgary.