Former Fayetteville resident Sohel Lilywala was sentenced Oct. 21 to nearly seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to a variety of charges such as being an alien in possession of a firearm, drug possession, making a false claim of U.S. citizenship and aggravated identity theft.
Thirty-four-year-old Lilywala was arrested in February at the Citgo gas station he owned and operated with his brother at 3819 Jonesboro Road in Atlanta, according to U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates, adding that he had acquired the identity of another person and used the information for a passport to which he was not entitled.
“A team of federal agents and local police officers found three handguns, several bags of narcotics, including methamphetamine, cocaine base and marijuana and digital scales behind the security counter and in a vacant check cashing room,” Yates said.
”Agents also found shotgun shells and other ammunition, a high-capacity magazine in Lilywala’s vehicle and $80,000 in cash in his brother’s car.”
Yates said Lilywala admitted that he knew that it was illegal for him to possess handguns because he is not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien. Lilywala further admitted that he paid someone several hundred dollars for a forged Georgia driver’s license with another person’s identifying information because he wanted to be able to apply for a U.S. passport using the name of a “real American,” Yates said.
