La Salle man sentenced to 15 years prison in drug-gun seizure

A La Salle man was sentenced Thursday to 15½ years in prison after pleading guilty to gun and drug charges.

Nathan C. Price, 43, appeared Thursday in La Salle County Circuit Court and pleaded guilty to four of his seven felony charges. These include armed habitual criminal, armed violence and two felony drug counts.

Assistant La Salle County State’s Attorney Laura Hall praised the Tri-County Drug Enforcement Narcotics Team and Streator police for the investigation and bust.

“I can’t say enough about the work the police did to get him off the street and give him a long stretch,” Hall said.

Price was charged Jan. 30 after Streator police conducted a traffic stop in the 1600 block of North Bloomington Street. There, a K-9 unit alerted to the presence of narcotics and Price was found to possess both powder and rock cocaine as well as a .22-caliber pistol.

The tandem possession of the firearm and narcotics, coupled with his criminal history, made him eligible for the armed violence and armed habitual criminal counts.