URBANA, Ill. (WAND) – A man who stole guns from a Champaign Rural King will spend eight years in prison.
Justin W. Johnson, 29, stole six new guns, valued at $2,600, from a locked room in the business, located at 913 W. Marketview Drive, around or on the date of Aug. 1, 2019. To enter the room, he went into the ceiling and entered by lowering himself through the drop ceiling.
The stolen guns ended up in Chicago, according to The News-Gazette, and were not recovered. Judge Tom Difanis called this fact “the equivalent of pouring gasoline on a roaring fire”.
In December, Johnson entered a guilty plea to charges of aggravated possession of stolen weapons and unlawful possession of weapons by a felon. Prosecutors recommended 10 years in prison.
Assistant Public Defender Ben Dyer shared letters from Johnson’s former employers and friends, who said he is “dependable, decent, hard-working and compassionate”. He argued Johnson is “a young man who had a lot going for him and made a really stupid decision”. He had argued for a four-year prison term and a recommendation for boot camp, which Difanis decided against approving.
The judge said a message of deterrence needed to be sent to those who might want to behave in a similar way.
