Guillermo Cardoso Arias, who was arrested in October, was brought before a court in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He is facing 10 years' jail for his attempt to export the weapons without a licence.

According to recordings from the investigation, Cardoso Arias asserted he was purchasing the fully automatic weapons on behalf of the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia to fight against the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.

"The defendant explained that there was a need for a lot of AK-47s because they are lighter and easier to handle than other weapons when climbing the mountains of Colombia," the Attorney's office said in a statement.

In December, five men were charged in Miami with belonging to a group of traffickers of weapons to Venezuela and Colombia. They pleaded guilty to conspiracy to export weapons to the two Colombian groups.

The weapons, sold in Venezuela to the highest bidder, were confiscated along with 700,000 rounds of munition and other arms-related items.

Two other people from the group are in jail awaiting trial, while one other person remains at large.

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