A former Nikiski man who posed as a state trooper last year will serve nearly four years in federal prison for illegally possessing firearms as a convicted felon.

Steven Andrew Bush, 56, was sentenced in an Anchorage federal court Wednesday to 45 months after pleading guilty in January to one count of felon in possession of a firearm.

Bush was arrested in February 2017 after Soldotna police received reports that he was demanding payment for construction work while carrying a firearm, according to a U.S. Attorney District of Alaska press release. Bush had a fake Alaska State Troopers badge and a T-shirt indicating he was an agent of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Law enforcement officers found 28 guns — including a fully automatic Sten MKII machine gun — in his Kenai home, and a 29th gun in one of his former residences in Danville, Va. Bush was convicted of embezzlement in Virginia and was prohibited from owning firearms.

During the sentencing, Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Burgess told the court that it was especially important to “send a message” to people considering falsely representing themselves as law enforcement, according to the release.