CARBONDALE MAN SENTENCED IN CRACK COCAINE CASE

A. Courtney Cox, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that on October 19, 2009, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois, Benton, Illinois, UCHE P. MORDI, age 24, of Carbondale, Illinois, was sentenced following his previously entered guilty plea to an Indictment charging him with Possession with Intent to Distribute 50 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing cocaine base, commonly known as “crack” cocaine. MORDI was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment, 5 years’ supervised release to follow imprisonment, a $200 fine and a $100 special assessment. MORDI’s term of supervised release was ordered to be non-reporting supervision as long as MORDI remains outside the United States, as MORDI is expected to be deported to his native country of Nigeria following his release from imprisonment.

According to the Indictment and other court documents, MORDI was found to be in possession of nearly a half-kilogram of “crack” cocaine when stopped by the Illinois State Police in Effingham County, Illinois, for a traffic violation on March 12, 2009, while en route from Chicago, Illinois, to Carbondale, Illinois, where he was a student.

The investigation was conducted by the Illinois State Police and the Drug Enforcement Administration and was conducted in cooperation with Effingham County State’s Attorney Edward Deters and the Effingham County Sheriff’s Department.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kit Morrissey.