Federal Jury Convicts Man of Possessing Multiple Firearms While Trafficking Fentanyl in Chicago Subu

FirearmsPhoto byPhoto by Ahmet Çiftçi:

The Department of Justuce announed a federal jury has convicted Omari Andrews, Jr. on drug and firearm charges for possessing multiple firearms while trafficking fentanyl and other narcotics in the Chicago suburbs, as announced by the Department of Justice.

On Friday, the jury found Andrews guilty of possessing an AR-15-style firearm and three handguns while trafficking fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, and marijuana in Mt. Prospect, Ill., in 2023. The verdicts were delivered after a week-long trial in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Prior to the trial, Andrews, 24, of Mt. Prospect, Ill., pleaded guilty to distributing fentanyl and heroin in Westmont, Villa Park, Des Plaines, and Hillside, Ill., during 2022 and 2023.

Andrews has been in federal custody since his arrest in 2023. U.S. District Judge Edmond E. Chang has set his sentencing for Dec. 18, 2024. Andrews faces a maximum sentence of life in federal prison.

The convictions were announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Sean Fitzgerald, Special Agent-in-Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Chicago. The Skokie and Evanston Police Departments provided valuable assistance in the investigation. The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alejandro G. Ortega and Sean Hennessy.

Holding firearm and drug offenders accountable through federal prosecution is a key component of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the Department of Justice’s strategy for reducing violent crime. In the Northern District of Illinois, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, along with its law enforcement partners, has implemented the PSN program to address a wide range of violent crime issues in the district, particularly those involving firearms.