ALEXANDRIA, La. — Two Ferriday residents face mandatory life sentences after they were found guilty in federal court Friday of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Maurice T. Smith, 33, and Chavo T. Thomas, were convicted by a jury after a four-day trial in U.S. District Court — Western District of Louisiana.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the two reportedly conspired to travel to California in October 2011 to purchase methamphetamine, and were arrested in Brookhaven after they were discovered on a train there with two pounds of pure methamphetamine intended for distribution in Ferriday.

“We commend the work of the law enforcement agencies who investigated this case,” U.S. Attorney Stephanie Finley said. “They were able to stop this shipment of illegal drugs before it could be sold in the Western District of Louisiana. I also want to thank the prosecutors who tried this case. My office will continue to prosecute these types of cases to the fullest extent of the law.”