A man trafficked guns into Connecticut. An ATF sting put him and a second suspect out of business.

A South Carolina man pleaded guilty Friday to two counts of possession of a firearm by a felon, after a sting operation by investigators that also involved a New Haven man.

Marquis Jerome Pollard, 42, of South Carolina, entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Pollard faces a maximum of 20 years in prison when he is sentenced Jan. 20.

Quinn Mooring of New Haven pleaded guilty in January to possession of a firearm by a felon, as part of the same scheme, and is awaiting sentencing, federal authorities said.

The court’s statement notes that Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives Task Force officers in 2021 learned Pollard used straw purchasers to obtain firearms in South Carolina, and sold the firearms in Connecticut. Investigators, also in 2021, made a controlled purchase of a 9mm Glock handgun and a drum magazine from Pollard and Mooring in New Haven in exchange for $1,500, federal authorities said in a statement.

The firearm was one of five 9mm handguns that had been purchased by an individual at a pawn shop in Port Royal, South Carolina, federal authorities said in the statement.

Pollard’s criminal history includes a state felony conviction for second-degree burglary, and other offenses and he therefore is not eligible to possess a gun, federal authorities said.

Pollard was charged by indictment in both the District of Connecticut and in the District of South Carolina. The latter case was transferred to Connecticut for further prosecution.