On a recent Tuesday, the streets of Rockford felt the weight of law as Rogelio Ibarra, 34, was handed a sentence amounting to more than six years in federal prison. The charge sheet was heavy - trafficking cocaine as well as a foray into gun sales. According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois, the man's plea agreement tells the story of a man who defiantly held five firearms, standing firmly in the face of his past convictions.

Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is the spearhead of the Department of Justice's strategy to curb violent crime, and Ibarra’s run-in with the federal prosecution seems to fit snugly within this initiative. Ibarra admitted in his plea that in 2021 and 2022, he actively was selling cocaine out on the street, helping to fund the criminal activities of the “Insane Unknowns” gang, as reported in the official announcement. Aiming to always keep their strategy current, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and law enforcement partners have deployed PSN to aggressively try to attack a gamut of violent crime issues, especially those involving firearms.

U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston saw enough evidence to land Ibarra a sentence of 76 months behind bars - a significant chunk of time. The sentence was the product of collaborative efforts between agencies including the FBI's Chicago Field Office, the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office, the Rockford Police Department, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. Their investigations have helped solidify the PSN program’s grasp on local crime.

Acting United States Attorney Morris Pasqual, along with Special Agent-in-Charge Douglas S. DePodesta announced the conclusion of Ibarra's case. The government was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ladd. "Holding illegal firearm possessors accountable through federal prosecution is a centerpiece of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) – the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction strategy," said the official press release.