Press Release
Heroin Dealer Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Virginia
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A Suffolk man was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.
According to court documents, Brian Williams, 38, was selling heroin in Suffolk, Virginia. When law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at his residence on December 21, 2018, they located numerous loaded firearms, a distribution quantity of fentanyl, digital scales, drug cutting agents, drug packaging materials and approximately $1500 in cash. Williams, a convicted felon who is prohibited from possessing firearms, was also in the residence with many of the firearms within arm’s reach.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988, provides assistance to Federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States. This grant program is administered by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). There are currently 28 HIDTAs, which include approximately 18 percent of all counties in the United States and 66 percent of the U.S. population.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Michael K. Lamonea, Assistant Special Agent in Charge of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Norfolk, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric M. Hurt prosecuted the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 4:19-cr-29.
Contact
Joshua Stueve
Director of Public Affairs
joshua.stueve@usdoj.gov
Updated September 12, 2019
Topics
Drug Trafficking
Firearms Offenses
Project Safe Neighborhoods
Component