East St. Louis Man Sentenced As Career Offender

John Arnold, 25, of East St. Louis, Illinois, was sentenced in United States District Court in East St. Louis, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today. Arnold, who was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 20, 2012, and entered a plea of guilty to Possession with the Intent to Distribute Crack Cocaine on September 17, 2012, was sentenced today to 151 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Arnold was also ordered to pay a fine of $750 and a special assessment of $100. In imposing the sentence, the Court found that Arnold was a Career Offender as defined in the United States Sentencing Guidelines.

According to a stipulation of facts submitted to the Court at the time of the plea, Arnold was arrested by the East St. Louis Police Department on April 5, 2012, at approximately 3:00 p.m. following a traffic violation. Arnold was placed under arrest after a computer check revealed that his driver’s license was revoked. The Defendant was patted down before to the arrest and two baggies containing a quantity of crack cocaine and a small amount of marijuana were located in Arnold’s underwear. Arnold later admitted that he intended to sell the crack cocaine.

Evidence in support of the indictment was obtained in an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the East St. Louis Police Department. This prosecution was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Randy G. Massey.