Berwyn gang member sentenced to 14 years in prison for gun trafficking

BERWYN – An admitted gang member from Berwyn was sentenced to 14 years in prison and two years of supervised release after pleading guilty to trafficking illegal guns, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced Sept. 29.

DuPage County Circuit Court Judge Liam Brennan sentenced Miguel Martinez, 28, of Berwyn in the gunrunning case prosecuted by Madigan’s office in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Justice – Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, a news release from the Attorney General's Office stated.

Between October 2015 and April 2016, Martinez sold several firearms illegally to an individual who did not possess valid FOID cards or concealed carry licenses, according to the release.

Department of Justice agents had arranged and closely monitored the transactions, and investigators found some of the guns had been stolen in residential burglaries in Grundy and DuPage counties, the release stated.

Ballistics testing showed at least one of the guns purchased had been used in a Cook County shooting, and several could be traced back to a Chicago street gang, according to the release.

“The defendant’s actions in this case perpetuated the sale of illegal guns for possible criminal activity,” Madigan said in the release. “I am committed to continuing to work with federal, state, county and municipal agencies to find and prosecute the individuals who traffic illegal guns.”

The bureau, with assistance from the Grundy County Sheriff’s Department and Cook County Sheriff’s Office, conducted the investigation before referring the case to Madigan’s office for prosecution, the release stated. Assistant Attorney General Mary Claire Nicholson handled the case for Madigan’s Special Prosecutions Bureau.