A Chicago man has been sentenced to more than four and a half years in federal prison after pleading guilty to illegally possessing a loaded handgun in a residence where several children were present.
According to authorities, Brandon Johnson, 37, was found with the firearm on January 25, 2020, at a home on Chicago’s Near West Side. Police responded to the location after receiving a call from an individual who alleged that Johnson had brandished the weapon and made threats to shoot. At the time of the incident, multiple children were inside the residence.
Johnson had prior felony convictions, which prohibited him from legally possessing any firearms. He pleaded guilty earlier this year to a federal firearm charge.
On August 13, 2025, U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey sentenced Johnson to 55 months in prison. Johnson has been held in law enforcement custody since December 2020 and will receive credit for time served.
The sentencing was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Christopher C. Amon, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives; with assistance from the Chicago Police Department.
“The City of Chicago has been plagued by gun violence for many years,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Prashant Kolluri stated in the government’s sentencing memorandum. “The possession of a loaded firearm is a significant contributor to that gun violence.”
