West Salem Man Sentenced To 14 Years In Prison For Methamphetamine Offense

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Dillion Wayne Bailey, 30, of West Salem, Illinois, was sentenced today in United States District Court in Benton to a 14 year term of imprisonment for possessing with intent to distribute 2 ounces of highly pure methamphetamine (commonly known as “crystal” or “ice”), announced Stephen R. Wigginton, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois. Bailey was charged with that offense by a Federal Grand Jury on July 8, 2014, and pled guilty to it on October 23rd. The offense occurred on June 13, 2014, in White County.

Evidence introduced in support of the guilty plea and sentence showed that on June 13th Bailey was stopped by a Grayville, Illinois, Police Department officer for a traffic violation. After an Edwards County Sheriff’s Department drug detection dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in Bailey’s vehicle, Bailey attempted to flee the scene in his vehicle. Bailey struck the officer with his car which forced the officer onto the hood to avoid being ran over. Bailey proceeded across a 2 block long parking lot with the officer still on his hood. Bailey ignored the officer’s commands to stop until the officer was able to draw and point his service weapon. Bailey continued to resist arrest, forcing officers to deploy the canine. After Bailey was subdued, 2 ounces of ice, a bag of glass smoking pipes, numerous small unused plastic baggies, and a digital scale were found in Bailey’s vehicle. Subsequent laboratory testing revealed that the methamphetamine was 100% pure. A search of Bailey’s pockets revealed $2,131 in cash.

In addition to the 14 year prison sentence, Bailey was ordered to pay fines and special assessments totaling $300 to the United States and was placed on a 3 year term of supervised release to follow his incarceration. Following his sentencing, Bailey was returned to the custody of the United States Marshal, where has been held without bond since his arrest on the federal charges in July, to await designation to a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility.

The case was investigated by the Carmi office of the Southern Illinois Drug Task Force and the Grayville Police Department, with the assistance of the Edwards County Sheriff’s Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney James M. Cutchin.