Lee Carey, 40, currently residing at HMP Lewes, was sentenced at Southampton Crown Court yesterday (13 December).
This comes after he was found guilty by a jury of possessing a prohibited firearm earlier this month.
He had also pleaded guilty to the following offences:
-Possessing a controlled Class A drug with intent to supply (crack cocaine)
-Supplying a controlled Class A drug (heroin)
-Possessing a controlled Class B drug (cannabis)
-Producing a controlled Class B drug (cannabis)
-Two counts of possessing criminal property, namely £27,240 in cash
On 29 November last year, officers carried out a warrant at his address in Bentley Green, Southampton.
They conducted searches of the house and garden and initially found more than £4,000 in cash, out houses where three cannabis plants were being grown and a large quantity of herbal cannabis and crack cocaine.
Further searching revealed a protein powder container buried in the garden which contained almost £23,000 in cash.
Weapons were also found at the address.
A police dog located a sawn-off shotgun with ammunition in a plastic bag, hidden behind a fence in the garden, and officers seized a zombie knife and a knuckle duster.
These were all ordered to be destroyed, and a proportion of the money seized will be reinvested into the force.
DC Lee Murden led the investigation. He said: “Drug dealing causes harm to our community by targeting vulnerable individuals and bringing firearms into our city.
“This is why, with our partner agencies, we operate a zero-tolerance approach to any criminality which involves a firearm and other weapons.
“I hope this sentence sends a strong message that if you possess weapons or supply drugs, you will be prosecuted and can also expect a long time behind bars.
“We rely on the public for information to plan warrants such as the one that led to Carey’s sentencing – so please continue to report what you know about drug dealing to us by calling 101 or reporting via our website.”
