30-year-old gets 7 years for distributing heroin

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said a 30-year-old Beloit man will spend the next 7 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to distributing heroin in Rock County last year.

U.S. District Judge William M. Conley sentenced Marcus Payton Wednesday in Madison.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Payton’s lengthy sentence was due in part to his long and violent criminal history.

Payton was charged following the results of an investigation conducted by a task force formed through the FBI’s Safe Streets Violent Crime Initiative. This initiative was designed to address gang and drug-related violence in places like Rock County by having local and federal law enforcement agencies work together on investigations.