Toronto Argonauts offensive linesman Edawn Coughman was arrested in Montreal this week after a loaded gun was found in his hotel room, according to police.
Police allege that a cleaning lady at The Queen Elizabeth Hotel saw the gun on a side table in the Canadian Football League player's hotel room and contacted police.
A SWAT team returned to the room early Wednesday morning to find the loaded weapon under the hotel mattress.
Coughman faces charges of possessing a loaded and restricted firearm without a permit, an offence that carries a mandatory minimum sentence of three years and a maximum sentence of ten years, if he is found guilty.
CTV Montreal reported that during a bail hearing on Thursday, a tearful Coughman explained that he had legally purchased the gun in his home state of Georgia.
He said he was unaware of Canada's strict gun laws and always carried the weapon.
"Being from a totally different background as far as carrying a firearm goes, yes, he was totally surprised," lawyer Hugues Surprenant told reporters.
"There are cultural discrepancies. Of course, for us Canadians there are no questions to be asked."
The Argonauts signed Coughman, 23, as a free agent on June 1, 2011. He spent most of the year on the Argonauts' practice roster before joining the team late in the season.
Coughman played college football at Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, graduating in 2010.
He was in Montreal attending work-out sessions at the Montreal Alouettes training facility.
During his bail hearing, Crown lawyers questioned how Coughman could afford two homes – one in Toronto and one in Atlanta – on his modest $44,000 CFL annual salary.
Crown Prosecutor David Landry said there was concern the American citizen could flee the country if granted bail. A bail decision is expected to be reached on Friday.
With files from CTV Montreal's Stephane Giroux
