East St. Louis Man Pleads Guilty To Firearm Offense

On February 7, 2013, Detrin C. Spraggins, a 46-year old East St. Louis, Illinois, man pled guilty in United States Federal District Court, in East St. Louis, to Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Previously Convicted Felon, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. Spraggins is scheduled for sentencing on May 31, 2013, at which time he faces a maximum potential sentence of 10 years’ in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, not more than 3 years’ of supervised release after his prison term, and a mandatory special assessment of $100. Spraggins also agreed to the forfeiture of the firearm.

Court proceedings revealed that on February 15, 2012, law enforcement officers patrolling in East. St. Louis, Illinois, observed individuals standing around a pickup truck with the door open parked across from an apartment building. As officers drove closer, the driver of the pickup truck closed the driver’s door and quickly sped off. Other officers stopped Spraggins when he pulled into a driveway. Spraggins consented to a body search, where contraband was discovered. This find led to an officer further opening the ajar door of the pickup truck to look for additional contraband. As he did so, he noticed the butt of a firearm sticking out of the driver’s side door pocket.

This case was investigated by the WAVE (Working Against Violent Elements) Task Force, which focuses its efforts on combating violent crime in East St. Louis, Washington Park, and surrounding communities. The WAVE Task Force receives financial support through the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative, a nationwide federal program which endeavors to address gun-related violence.

This case is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Daniel T. Kapsak for prosecution.