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A North Dakota resident was sentenced to prison today for his role in the theft of copper wire from Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Blanco of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Christopher C. Myers of the District of North Dakota.

Benjamin Guidry, 41, was sentenced to serve 33 months in prison following his conviction for theft of government property.

In February 2013, Guidry was working for a local Afghan company. The evidence at trial demonstrated that he solicited two civilian contractors at Kandahar Airfield to obtain various materials for him in exchange for cash. The contractors reported the defendant to the U.S. Army Criminal Investigations Command (Army CID) at Kandahar Airfield.

With the assistance of the U.S. Air Force and others, Army CID set up a sting operation. According to the evidence presented at trial, as part of the sting operation, Guidry offered one of the contractors $4,000 in exchange for help stealing spools of copper wire worth approximately $54,000. Guidry was apprehended after leaving the Air Force compound with the copper wire.

Army CID investigated with assistance from the U.S. Air Force. Trial Attorneys Frank Rangoussis and Ann Marie Ursini of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section prosecuted the case