Man Sentenced to Eight Years in Prison for Illegally Possessing Gun and Drugs in Chicago Suburb

CHICAGO — A man has been sentenced to eight years in federal prison for illegally possessing a loaded semiautomatic handgun, cocaine, and heroin in a Chicago suburb.

QUINCY J. ARNOLD illegally possessed the gun and drugs on Oct. 17, 2020, in Bellwood, Ill.  Bellwood Police officers pulled over Arnold’s vehicle for a traffic infraction near a mall parking lot.  The officers discovered the loaded gun concealed under the floor mat of the driver’s seat, within reaching distance of Arnold.  Officers further discovered in Arnold’s possession the cocaine and heroin, which were packaged for sale in more than 360 individual baggies.  Arnold admitted in a plea agreement that he intended to distribute the narcotics to others. 

Arnold had previously been convicted of multiple felonies in state court and was not legally allowed to possess a firearm.

Arnold, 49, of Bellwood, Ill., pleaded guilty last year to federal firearm and drug charges.  U.S. District Judge Jorge L. Alonso imposed the sentence Tuesday after a hearing in federal court in Chicago.

The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI; and Jiminez Allen, Chief of the Bellwood Police Department.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles W. Mulaney represented the government.

Holding illegal firearm possessors and drug traffickers accountable through federal prosecution is a centerpiece of Project Safe Neighborhoods, the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction strategy.  In the Northern District of Illinois, U.S. Attorney Lausch and law enforcement partners have deployed the PSN program to attack a broad range of violent crime issues facing the district, particularly firearm and drug offenses.