ALEXANDRIA, La. - A Catahoula Parish man has pleaded guilty to firearms and explosives charges.

Bill W. Womack, 56, pleaded guilty Thursday before U.S. District Judge Dee Drell to possessing an unregistered explosive device and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. The plea allows him to appeal a judge's ruling about federal warrants. Attorney Mike Small says that Womack could withdraw the plea if he wins.

Womack faces up to 15 years in prison and up to $250,000 in fines.

Law enforcement officers responded to an explosion inside Womack's estranged wife's SUV in September 2014.

The explosion led to a five-day search of his property that found machine guns, silencers, a short-barreled rifle and more than a kilogram of marijuana. Federal agents say they destroyed explosives Womack had set.