A Chattanooga man has been sentenced to serve 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to cocaine selling charges.
Edward Paris, 40, appeared before Judge Sandy Mattice. He will be on eight years of supervised release.
Chattanooga Police conducted a search at the residence of Paris on Nov. 30, 2017. They found Paris lying on a bed with a Zastava AK semi-automatic pistol beneath him.
Officers also located 2.4 pounds of marijuana, 67.6 grams of crack cocaine, 346.1 grams of Ecstasy, 5.6 grams of powder cocaine, 8.6 grams of Xanax, several digital scales and $695 cash.
Police said Paris admitted buying the marijuana from a female with "cartel" ties and said he got the cocaine from the same source.
Questioned about the gun, he said, "When dealing with the cartel one has to protect themselves."