New Orleans Man Sentenced to 80 Months for Drug and Weapons Charges

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that on July 17, 2024, GREGORY WILLIAMS ("WILLIAMS"), age 31, a resident of Orleans Parish, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lance M. Africk to 80 months of imprisonment, 5 years of supervised release, and a $400 mandatory special assessment fee, after previously pleading guilty to four counts of a seven-count superseding indictment.

In Count 4 of the superseding indictment, WILLIAMSwas charged with possession, with the intent to distribute, a controlled substance, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(D). In Count 5, WILLIAMS was charged with possessing a firearm, during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c)(1)(A)(i). In Count 6, WILLIAMS was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(2). Finally, in Count 7, WILLIAMS was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 922(g)(1) and 924(a)(8).

According to court records, on February 10, 2022, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office ("JPSO") conducted a narcotics investigation at an apartment complex in Metairie, LA. Based on their observations, officers stopped a vehicle in the parking lot. During that stop, several individuals present in the lot, one of whom was WILLIAMS, fled from law enforcement. After identifying WILLIAMS as the front-seat passenger of a Dodge Charger that was also present in the lot, JPSO officers obtained a search warrant for the vehicle. During the search, officers located a firearm and narcotics in the front passenger seat, as well as documentation linked to WILLIAMS. Later, on October 1, 2022, officers saw WILLIAMS with two firearms outside of a residence on Clio Street in New Orleans.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office, and the New Orleans Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Inga Petrovich of the Violent Crime Unit.