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A man found with homemade explosives, crystal meth and a concealed firearm in a Washington grocery store parking lot in 2024 was sentenced to three years in prison on Friday, Mar. 28 in Wilmington. 

According to an indictment of Smith, he was charged with possession of machineguns and possession of a firearm not registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. 

According to the indictment, “On or about January 10, 2024 in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the defendant, Cameron Lee Smith, did knowingly possess machineguns, and machinegun conversion devices, also known as a ‘switch,’ in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(o) and 924(a)(2). On or about January 10, 2024, in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the defendant, Cameron Lee Smith, knowingly possessed a firearm, a destructive device (improvised explosive device), not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Sections 5841, 5861(d), and 5871.” 

The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice Eastern District of North Carolina. 

Cameron Lee Smith, then 40, of Washington, was discovered by an investigator with Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office at approximately 6:45 p.m. on Jan. 10, 2024 in the Food Lion parking lot off John Small Avenue. The investigator, noticing Smith slumped over in a vehicle, began conducting a welfare check and noticed drug paraphernalia in plain view. After making contact with Smith, the investigator located a firearm and crystal meth. 

The investigator and deputies found “what appeared to be possible explosives” while conducting a probable cause search of Smith’s vehicle. The explosives were two homemade grenades, Sheriff Scott Hammonds said at a press conference that week. 

Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office requested assistance from Washington Police, Washington Fire/EMS, Beaufort County Emergency Services and Cherry Point EOD.