A man from suburban Chicago has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for trafficking fentanyl and cocaine and illegally possessing a loaded handgun. William Fillyaw was found with the drugs and firearm on October 28, 2022, in the parking lot of his apartment complex in Gurnee, Illinois. He had a backpack containing cocaine packaged in quarter-ounce quantities, fentanyl wrapped in three square bricks, and an untraceable "ghost gun" assembled from a kit. Fillyaw admitted to intending to sell the drugs and possessing the gun for his trafficking activities.
Fillyaw, aged 47, pleaded guilty earlier this year to federal drug and firearm charges. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly during a hearing in federal court in Chicago.
The announcement of the sentence came from Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, along with Michael E. Hensle, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Milwaukee Field Office of the FBI. The case received valuable assistance from several law enforcement agencies including the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Milwaukee Police Department, Cudahy Police Department, and Wisconsin State Patrol.
"Narcotics distribution and firearm offenses are serious crimes that adversely impact the people who live and work in the Northern District of Illinois," stated Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirsten Moran and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Niranjan Emani in the government's sentencing memorandum. They also expressed concern over "the increased presence of ghost guns in Chicago, and the country in general," noting their frequent use in crimes due to their untraceability.
The prosecution aligns with Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which focuses on holding illegal firearm possessors accountable through federal prosecution. In Northern Illinois, PSN is utilized by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and law enforcement partners to address various violent crime issues, particularly those involving firearms.
