Roscoe, Ill. Man Sentenced to Nearly 9 Years in Federal Prison on Firearm and Drug Trafficking Charges

ROCKFORD — A Roscoe, Ill. man has been sentenced to nearly nine years in federal prison for trafficking cocaine and fentanyl and possessing a firearm in furtherance of his drug trafficking activities.

XZAVIOR SMITH, 24, pleaded guilty earlier this year to knowingly and intentionally possessing the cocaine and fentanyl with the intent to distribute, and possessing a Glock 19 pistol in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston in Rockford sentenced Smith to eight years and ten months in federal prison.

On June 14, 2021, Freeport Police Department officers attempted to execute a traffic stop on Smith’s vehicle.  Smith refused to pull over, then accelerated and ignored traffic signs while fleeing towards Durand, Ill.  Shortly thereafter, the Stephenson County Sheriff’s Department attempted to stop Smith on Route 75.  Smith did not stop and again accelerated, reaching speeds of up to 113 miles per hour.  Eventually, Smith pulled into a private driveway and fled on foot, discarding bags containing cocaine and fentanyl and a loaded Glock pistol with an extended magazine loaded with 29 rounds of ammunition.  Smith was located by pursuing members of law enforcement.

The sentence was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Robert W. “Wes” Wheeler, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI.  Valuable assistance was provided by the Stephenson County Sheriff’s Office, the Freeport Police Department, the Roscoe Police Department, and the Beloit, Wisc., Police Department’s Crime Interdiction Team.  The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ladd.