West Palm Beach man, 24, sentenced on federal drug trafficking, weapons charges

Julius Whigham II, Palm Beach Post
·2 min read

WEST PALM BEACH — A 24-year-old West Palm Beach man was sentenced to 45 years in federal prison this week after a jury found him guilty of drug trafficking and weapons charges.

Willie Boone learned his fate during a hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 20 before U.S. District Judge Robin L. Rosenberg at the federal courthouse in West Palm Beach. He faced a minimum of 45 years after a jury in November found him guilty on two counts of conspiracy with possession to distribute a controlled substance, and one count each of distribution of a controlled substance, possession of a machine gun in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and felony possession of a firearm.

A second defendant, Kevin Gibson, was sentenced last April to six years and five months in prison after he pleaded guilty to a charge of unlawfully possessing a firearm. The two men were detained in March of 2022 after undercover investigators conducted controlled narcotics buys at a residence on 52nd Street in West Palm Beach.

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Search warrant led to discovery of drugs, weapons in West Palm Beach residence

West Palm Beach police obtained a warrant to search the residence. During the search, officers found multiple controlled substances, including a synthetic opiod commonly sold as fentanyl, cocaine and Eutylone, according to a federal complaint. The officers also found two firearms, including a Glock Model 17 pistol with a machine gun conversion device.

Boone was previously convicted of three felony drug-trafficking offenses and was prohibited from possessing a firearm, including the unregistered machine gun.

Forensic evidence recovered from two cell phones located at the home and Boone’s DNA on the Glock Model 17 pistol confirmed his possession of the firearm and possession in the charged drug conspiracy, investigators said.

Julius Whigham II is a criminal justice and public safety reporter for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jwhigham@pbpost.com and follow him on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, at @JuliusWhigham. Help support our work:Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Judge sends West Palm man to prison on federal drug, weapons charges