The second of two brothers charged with selling drugs out of their Colorado Springs liquor store was sentenced on Wednesday, avoiding the lengthy prison sentence that his brother received earlier this year.

Brian Yi, 42, appeared in court Wednesday for his sentencing hearing four months after his brother, Steve Yi, 45, was sentenced to 13 years in prison for pleading guilty to possession with intent to manufacture or distribute fentanyl, a Level 1 drug offense, in January.

The judge sentenced Brian Yi to six years probation.

The brothers were arrested in 2022 on suspicion of selling thousands of dollars in illegal narcotics out of Austin Bluffs Plaza Liquors. Police said undercover officers bought $1,800 worth of “blues,” a slang word for oxycodone, from Brian and Steve Yi. Law enforcement said that after the brothers were arrested, investigators recovered 2,000 fentanyl pills, 2.36 pounds of cocaine, 14.6 grams of Xanax, 11.3 grams of oxycodone and just over 3.5 pounds of marijuana products.

Police also reported finding $36,100, three handguns and an assault rifle at the Yi brothers’ liquor store after their arrest.

Brian Yi appeared at sentencing after pleading guilty to the Level 2 drug charge of controlled substance possession with the intent to distribute in June, according to court records. Brian Yi entered the hearing facing a significantly less severe sentencing range than his brother, due to the belief from investigators that Steve Yi was primarily responsible for the drug sales happening at the liquor store.

At sentencing on Wednesday Brian Yi’s attorney, Josh Tolini, stated that Brian Yi was rarely at the liquor store because he spent most of his time running the laundromat his family also owned in the city.

The evidence of Brian Yi being less responsible than his brother led to a sentencing range on his plea deal with an optional prison sentence with the possibility of probation.

Prosecutor Andrew Herlihy stated to the court that he still believed a prison sentence would be “warranted,” but the facts of the case made him more understanding of other sentencing options for the court. Specifically, Herlihy referred to Brian Yi being less culpable than Steve Yi, and also the pre-sentence investigation report’s recommendation for a sentence to Community Corrections.

Tolini argued for a probation sentence for Brian Yi, but a strict one with a mandatory prison sentence if he fails on probation at any point.

Tolini advocated for a probation sentence because of Brian Yi’s lack of criminal record, his noted less involvement in the drug trade at the liquor store and his sincere regret for his actions.

“I’m deeply ashamed of what I did,” Brian Yi said to the court before Sokol issued her sentence. “I’m mortified of it, and I do take responsibility for it.”

After a brief break, Sokol returned to the bench to issue what she said was an “unusual” sentence. Sokol informed Brian Yi that she was sentencing him to six years of unsupervised probation with a deferred prison sentence.

Sokol stated that the sentence was a “very hard thing to do,” because of the impact fentanyl destitution has had on the community.

“There really may be no more serious crime at the moment,” Sokol said.

Ultimately, Sokol said she decided to give the probation sentence to Brian Yi because of her belief that he will succeed on probation, and that he was significantly less culpable than Steve Yi.

Steve Yi was sentenced to 13 years in prison on May 15 earlier this year. Department of Corrections records show that Steve Yi is currently incarcerated at the Bent County Correctional Facility.