A Mt. Sterling man is heading to federal prison on drug charges.
58-year old Thomas A. Langan pleaded guilty to 5 counts of methamphetamine delivery back on September 28th of last year. The charges stem from a sting operation conducted by the the West Central Illinois Drug Task Force, in conjunction with a SWAT team with the Illinois State Police and sworn personnel from the Brown County Sheriff’s Department on February 1st of last year at a residence in rural Timewell. More than 15 grams of methamphetamine were recovered, along with various items of drug paraphernalia and other items that indicate the alleged sale of methamphetamine.
Langan was arrested and eventually charged with five counts of methamphetamine-related offenses committed on Jan. 10, Jan. 12, Jan. 24, Jan. 28, and Feb. 1st in Brown County Circuit Court, but those charges would be dismissed and remanded to the federal court system. The U.S. State’s Attorney’s Office for the Central District of Illinois secured an indictment on May 10th.
The pleadings indicated that the residence of Langan, consisting of a mobile home and approximately two acres of real estate, along with $4,402, were used to facilitate the illegal delivery of methamphetamine. The items were declared forfeited to the director of the Illinois State Police by court action on April 11.
The real property will be sold. The proceeds, along with the cash, will be divided among the Illinois State Police, the Brown County Sheriff’s Department, the West Central Illinois Drug Task Force, the Illinois Appellate Prosecutor’s Office and the Office of the Brown County State’s Attorney for use in future drug enforcement actions.
Yesterday, in federal court in Springfield, Langan was sentenced to 5 years in federal prison on all 5 counts, a 4-year term of mandatory supervised release, and ordered to pay a $500 special assessment to the court.