Chicago man faces nearly 8 years for robbing undercover officer during gun deal
CHICAGO (CBS) – A Chicago man is facing nearly eight years in federal prison for robbing a law enforcement officer during a gun deal, United States Attorney John R. Lausch, Jr. for the Northern District of Illinois announced Thursday.
On May 2, Cortex Price, 24, arranged to sell a handgun equipped with a switch device to the undercover officer in a drug store parking lot in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood.
Upon arrival, Price got into the front seat of the officer's vehicle and accepted $1,900 in cash for the gun. Instead of handing over the firearm, he inserted high-capacity ammunition into and racked the slide, Lausch said.
He got out of the vehicle with the cash and gun and fled the area.
Law enforcement followed Price along with the assistance of aerial support to a nearby residence and arrested him.
Price, who sold three firearms prior to the undercover deal, stated on social media communications that he engaged in other negotiations to buy, sell, or arrange the sale of firearms. The switch device converted the handgun into an automatic machine gun, Lausch said.
"By individually participating in violent armed conduct and trafficking firearms to others, defendant became part of one of the district's most pressing crime problems," Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Hayes argued in the government's sentencing memorandum. "The toll that gun violence inflicts on individuals and neighborhoods in Chicago is inescapable to anyone residing in this district."
Price pleaded guilty earlier this year to federal firearm charges and was sentenced to 93 months following a hearing Wednesday in federal court in Chicago.