Virginia Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl and Firearms Trafficking Charges
Alexandria, VA – William Phillip McDowell, Jr., a 44-year-old man from Bowie, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday to using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.
According to court documents, on August 18, 2022, McDowell was driving a rental car through Harrison County, West Virginia, with two passengers when an officer from the Clarksburg Police Department stopped the vehicle for speeding. At the time, McDowell’s driver license was suspended, and McDowell was on probation for a felony murder conviction. During a search of the vehicle, police found a pack containing a brick-size package of 997.7 grams of fentanyl, 43 baggies containing a total of 16.46 grams of fentanyl, a bag containing 8.89 grams of cocaine, and a stolen, loaded .40 caliber semiautomatic handgun.
McDowell pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl for this case.
On July 7, 2023, detectives with the Prince William County Police Department observed McDowell conducting what appeared to be a drug transaction in a parking lot in Woodbridge, Virginia. When McDowell returned to the passenger seat of his vehicle, the detectives detained and searched the vehicle. In the passenger seat where McDowell had been sitting, the detectives found a backpack containing a .380 caliber handgun, .380 caliber ammunition, 388 fentanyl pills, 22 grams of cocaine, a digital scale with cocaine residue, $617.85 in cash, and a wallet with McDowell’s photo identification card.
McDowell pleaded guilty to using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.
McDowell is scheduled to be sentenced on June 11. He faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison for the drug trafficking charge from the Northern District of West Virginia and a mandatory minimum of five years to be served consecutively with any other prison term and up to life in prison for the firearms charge from the Eastern District of Virginia.
Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meredith Edwards and Raizza K. Ty are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brandon S. Flower prosecuted the Northern District of West Virginia case.
Defendant’s Information:
Defendant: William Phillip McDowell, Jr.
Charges: Using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime and possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.
City and State: Alexandria, Virginia
Date: August 18, 2022
Sentence: Scheduled to be sentenced on June 11. Faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison for the drug trafficking charge and a mandatory minimum of five years to be served consecutively with any other prison term and up to life in prison for the firearms charge.
Dollar Amounts: $617.85 in cash.
Key Facts
- State: Virginia
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime|Weapons
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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