Fayette County Man Gets 78 Months for Fentanyl, Gun Charges

Phillip Maurice Collins, 42, of Lexington, is headed to federal prison for 78 months after being convicted of dealing fentanyl and cocaine while armed — a loaded gun found right in his bedroom during a raid.

The sentence, handed down today by U.S. District Judge Danny C. Reeves, lands hard on Collins for a felony combo that’s become all too common in Kentucky’s opioid crisis: drug distribution and illegal firearm possession by a convicted felon.

On August 22, 2018, Lexington Police Department officers stormed Collins’s home with a search warrant. Inside, they uncovered stash bags of fentanyl and cocaine — clear evidence of intent to distribute — and a loaded firearm stashed in his bedroom, according to court documents.

Collins had no legal right to that gun. With multiple prior felony convictions already on record, federal and state laws barred him from possessing any firearm. Yet there it was — ready to use, loaded, in the same room where he stored his drugs.

He didn’t fight the charges. On January 30, 2019, Collins pleaded guilty to all counts: possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. Under federal sentencing rules, he must serve at least 85 percent of his 78-month sentence before release.

Upon release, Collins will face six more years under the watchful eye of the U.S. Probation Office. The case was announced jointly by Robert M. Duncan, Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; D. Christopher Evans, DEA Louisville Division; and Lexington Police Chief Lawrence Weathers — a reminder that the streets are watching, and so is the federal system.

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