Three Rockford Area Residents Arrested on Federal Drug and Conspiracy Charges; Authorities Announce Seizures of Handguns, Cash, Crack, and Heroin
ROCKFORD — Three Rockford area residents were arrested today by federal and local law enforcement officers on drug-trafficking charges. ANTOWAN S. LAMBERT, also known as "Twan," 42, of Rockton, Ill., and JESSE M. LEAVY, also known as "Lil Jesse" and "Lil Head," 35, of Rockford, were arrested on charges of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and cocaine base or "crack," and multiple counts of distribution of cocaine or crack. An indictment returned last week charged both men with a conspiracy to distribute cocaine and cocaine base from June through October 2019.
In a separate but related case, SAMMY R. GORDON, JR., also known as "Sosa," 31, of Rockford, was charged by federal criminal complaint with distributing fentanyl and heroin in Rockford.
Law enforcement also executed court-authorized search warrants at multiple locations in Rockford. During the searches, authorities recovered 10 handguns, approximately $30,000, more than 100 grams of crack, approximately 90 grams of heroin, and more than 4.5 kilograms of marijuana.
Defendants Lambert, Leavy, and Gordon, Jr., appeared today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Lisa A. Jensen in federal court in Rockford. Each defendant pled not guilty and remains in custody on the federal charges pending detention hearings. The detention hearings for Leavy and Gordon, Jr. are scheduled for Monday, Feb. 3, 2020, and the detention hearing for Lambert is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020.
The public is reminded that a complaint or an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of guilt. Each defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Each count against Lambert and Leavy carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The count against Gordon, Jr. carries a 5-year mandatory minimum and a maximum of 40 years’ imprisonment. If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal sentencing statutes and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.
The charges were announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert J. Bell, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Office of the Drug Enforcement Administration; Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Timothy Jones, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; Dan O’Shea, Rockford Police Chief; Gary Caruana, Winnebago County Sheriff; Brendan F. Kelly, Director of the Illinois State Police; and Kathy A. Enstrom, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Office of the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Talia Bucci and Vincenza Tomlinson.
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