A gang member was sentenced to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to selling guns to undercover officers in Waukegan, prosecutors said.
Damond Martin, 28, of the 1000 block of West Losey Road in Galesburg, pleaded guilty in October to four counts of unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon and four counts of unlawful sale of a stolen firearm.
Martin was sentenced by Lake County Judge Victoria Rossetti and will serve three years of mandatory supervised release following his prison sentence. Martin received 139 days of credit for time served in the Lake County Jail while awaiting court proceedings.
Martin was taken into custody on August 2 following a five-month investigation conducted by the Lake County Sheriff’s Special Investigations Group (SIG).
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office said Martin sold an undercover SIG detective a semi-automatic firearm with an obliterated serial number in November 2018. He also sold an undercover SIG detective a MAC-11 semi-automatic firearm in April. Both sales occurred in Waukegan.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Chicago Field Division are members of the SIG Group and had a significant role in the investigation, Lake County Sheriff Spokesman Sgt. Christopher Covelli said.
“Keeping firearms out of the hands of felons and those who can’t legally possess them is a major priority for our Special Investigations Group. I am grateful for the collaboration of our detectives, the ATF Chicago Field Division, Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office, and all of our partner SIG agencies,” Lake County Sheriff John Idleburg said at the time of Martin’s arrest.
“These men and women put themselves in very dangerous situations every day to keep our community safe,” Idleburg added.