Rockford Man Sentenced to 16 Years in Prison for Trafficking Fentanyl and Heroin

ROCKFORD — A Rockford man has been sentenced to 16 years in federal prison for trafficking fentanyl and heroin.

DEMARGIO TRIPP, 36, pleaded guilty earlier this year to distributing 40 grams or more of fentanyl and heroin in the Rockford area in 2024 and 2025.  Tripp also admitted that in May 2025 he possessed cocaine and other narcotics that he intended to sell to others.  

On May 27, 2026, U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston sentenced Tripp to 192 months in federal prison.  Judge Johnston found that Tripp qualified as a “career offender” under federal law due to multiple drug trafficking convictions in state and federal courts.

The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Christopher Amon, Special Agent-in-Charge of ATF’s Chicago Field Division.  The Winnebago County, Ill. Sheriff’s Office provided valuable assistance.

“Distribution of fentanyl and other controlled substances is a serious and dangerous offense,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Theodora Anderson argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum.  “As a drug dealer, defendant is a direct cause of these problems.”