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Phillips Charles, also known as PHON C, pleaded guilty to several drug and gun charges in April and was sentenced earlier this month to six and a half years in prison with four years of supervised release, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
Charles is well known to police in Middlesex County. After his arrest in October 2019 arrest for suspected drug trafficking, the reported gang member continued to traffic drugs and flaunted it along with his cash and weapons online, federal authorities said.
"... Specifically, while on pretrial release, Charles was involved in the filming of a publicly posted music video in which Charles was shown along with numerous firearms, including a firearm with an attached “selector switch,” one of which he was shown handling and pointing at the camera. Videos and text messages recovered during the investigation revealed that Charles historically possessed a number of firearms," a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
"Additionally, while still on pretrial release in October 2020 and following a brief encounter with a rival gang member, his girlfriend, and their one-year-old child at the Square One Mall in Saugus, Charles pursued the victim and his family and fired at least seven rounds into their vehicle. Charles remained on pretrial release until he was arrested and charged in state court with possessing a firearm in December 2020."
The FBI said Charles helped fuel the drug problem in his community and contributed to the violence.
“This first-time federal felon profited from the misery of others who were addicted to the poison he peddled,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division. “(This) sentence protects the public from Phillips Charles’ escalating criminal behavior, and his proclivity towards drug dealing, firearms, and violence.”
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