Phillip Wilson, Heroin and Gun Charges, Vermont 2017

Burlington Man Sentenced to 84 Months in Prison for Heroin and Gun Charges

The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Phillip Wilson, 37, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to charges of distribution of heroin, possession with intent to distribute heroin, and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

According to court records, between February and June of 2016, Wilson sold heroin to an informant on five separate occasions. When a search warrant was executed at Wilson’s residence, law enforcement located 160 bags of heroin and a revolver. A second search warrant was executed at a residence frequented by Wilson and law enforcement located an additional 160 bags of heroin, $3,333 of U.S. currency, and two handguns.

The prosecution agreed that an 84-month prison sentence was appropriate, and Chief U.S. District Court Judge Christina Reiss considered the severity of the offense, the harm heroin has caused the Vermont community, and Wilson’s criminal record among other factors.

Phillip Wilson, 37, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison on June 15, 2017, for his crimes. He will serve three years of supervised release after his prison term.

For his crimes, Wilson faced a 5-year mandatory minimum sentence and a statutory maximum term of life in prison. The government and the defense agreed that an 84-month prison sentence was appropriate.

Acting United States Attorney Eugenia Cowles commended the efforts of the Vermont State Police Drug Task Force and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration for their work in this investigation.

The prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nate Burris and Kunal Pasricha. Wilson was represented by Mark Oettinger of the Burlington law firm Montroll, Backus & Oettinger, P.C.

Wilson has been in federal custody since the time of his arrest. The case is part of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Vermont Heroin Initiative, a coordinated effort to combat heroin distribution in Vermont.

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