Carlinville Man to Serve 17 1/2 Years in Prison for Selling Ice Methamphetamine, 12 Guns Recovered, Forfeited

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – A Carlinville, Ill., man, Shawn Lee, 45, was sentenced on Feb. 1, 2019, to 17 ½ years (210 months) in federal prison for trafficking ice methamphetamine and possession of firearms, including an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle, in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. At sentencing, District Judge Sue E. Myerscough determined that Lee was responsible for distribution of approximately 100 pounds (45 kilos) of ice methamphetamine over a period of 18 to 24 months prior to his arrest in March 2018.

Known as ice, this extremely addictive form of methamphetamine is produced by chemically distilling methamphetamine hydrochloride to a crystal or ‘ice’ form which is typically smoked. It is not made by local meth cooks; instead it is produced in Mexico and other countries and smuggled into the United States.

“These drugs, brought into our country, are destroying families,” said U.S. Attorney John Milhiser. “We will continue to identify and prosecute those who distribute these deadly substances in our communities.”

Lee, of the 100 block of E. Haig St., was ordered to serve 12 ½ years for the ice trafficking offense followed by a mandatory five years in prison for possession of firearms related to the underlying drug offense. Judge Myerscough ordered that Lee pay a fine of $20,000 to be paid with the transfer of a savings bond to the government prior to his transfer to the federal Bureau of Prisons. In addition, Lee agreed to the forfeiture of 12 guns and $20,170 in currency seized during the investigation. Lee’s federal sentence will be served concurrent to any sentence ordered for several pending unrelated cases in Macoupin county.

The charges are the result of investigation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; the Central Illinois Enforcement Group, the South Central Illinois Task Force; Carlinville Police Department; Illinois State Police; Jacksonville Police Department; and, the Macoupin County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Z. Weir represented the government in the case prosecution.

On July 30, 2018, Lee entered pleas of guilty to the offenses. According to court documents and statements made in court, law enforcement officers became aware that Lee was to receive a package of ice methamphetamine from a source in California on Jan. 23, 2018. On that date, officers observed Lee pick up a FedEx package from a home in Chatham, Ill., where he did not live. Officers subsequently stopped Lee’s vehicle and after an ISP K-9 alerted to the presence of drugs in the car, officers found 7.15 pounds (3.22 kilos) of ice methamphetamine and $20,170 in the car.

At Lee’s home in Carlinville, officers executed a search warrant on Jan. 23, 2018, and recovered 12 firearms, including the AR-15, and an assortment of other loaded guns including 22 caliber rifles and several handguns, five ounces (approximately 140 grams ) of ice, and paraphernalia used in selling drugs such as scales and baggies.

Lee has remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service since he was indicted and arrested in March 2018.