TAMPA, Fla. — A Hillsborough County high school teacher has pleaded guilty to federal charges connected to an international gun smuggling conspiracy involving a Trinidad-based criminal organization.
Shannon Lee Samlalsingh, 46, admitted to conspiring to make false statements to firearms dealers in a scheme that authorities say funneled weapons from Florida to Trinidad and Tobago. She entered the guilty plea on June 20 and faces up to five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not been scheduled.
According to court documents, Samlalsingh purchased multiple firearms and components in Hillsborough and Miami-Dade counties between 2020 and 2021. While filling out mandatory ATF Form 4473 background check paperwork, she falsely stated that she was the actual buyer. In reality, she was acting on behalf of a Trinidadian transnational criminal organization…