Samuel Below Gets 10 Years for Meth, Gun Run in Wichita

A Phoenix man crossed state lines to push poison — and brought a warzone weapon with him. Samuel Below, 29, was sentenced Tuesday to 10 years in federal prison for trafficking methamphetamine in Wichita, Kansas, U.S. Attorney Tom Beall announced.

Below admitted to driving from Phoenix to Wichita on Jan. 12, 2016, hauling more than half a pound of methamphetamine destined for the city’s streets. The shipment wasn’t just a commercial deal — it was a calculated move to profit off addiction, a decision that triggered federal charges under interstate drug trafficking laws.

But the drug run wasn’t his only crime. Three days later, on Jan. 15, 2016, Below possessed a Sig Sauer 5.56 caliber pistol — not for protection, prosecutors said, but to advance his drug operation. He pleaded guilty to carrying a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, a charge that carries mandatory, unforgiving time.

Convicted on two counts — interstate travel in furtherance of drug trafficking and firearm use during a drug crime — Below’s decade-long sentence reflects the federal crackdown on dealers who arm themselves. The presence of a high-caliber weapon elevated the threat level, turning a distribution case into a public safety time bomb.

The investigation was a joint operation involving the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Department, the Wichita Police Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Their coordination dismantled what could have become a longer-running drug operation.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Debra Barnett and Alan Metzger prosecuted the case, with U.S. Attorney Tom Beall crediting the investigators for taking a dangerous player off the street. For Samuel Below, the road from Phoenix ended behind federal bars — a 10-year fall for a half-pound of meth and one loaded decision too many.