A Suffolk man was sentenced Wednesday to more than eight years in federal incarceration for being a felon in possession of more than a dozen firearms and attempting to obstruct justice.

Richard Allen Patterson, 47, a previously convicted felon, conspired with his wife to stockpile weapons in their home, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. They had at least 23 rifles, shotguns and handguns as well as hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

Once they learned the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was investigating them, they attempted to cover up their crimes through a number of different avenues.

According to the press release, they lied to federal authorities, tampered with witnesses — including their own teenage daughters — hid evidence and attempted to fabricate evidence to exonerate Patterson, the press release stated.

“One egregious obstruction example was when Patterson had his wife change the registered address of their business weeks after ATF executed a search warrant for the property and then moved to suppress the warrant because ATF included the ‘wrong’ address in it,” the release stated.

Christina Patterson was sentenced in July to 12 months of prison and six months of house arrest for helping her husband possess firearms and attempting to obstruct the investigation against him.

Christina Patterson also faces six counts of bestiality and six counts of animal cruelty in local courts. According to a city press release, a search of computers from the residence related to the firearms charges allegedly turned up videos of the couple engaged in acts of bestiality with a dog.

Charges against Richard Patterson related to the bestiality will not move forward until his federal process has been completed, the release stated.