Bryan C. Lawson, Methamphetamine Trafficking, New Mexico 2018

Las Cruces Man Pleads Guilty to Methamphetamine Trafficking Charge

Bryan C. Lawson, 22, of Las Cruces, N.M., has pleaded guilty to a felony information charging him with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Lawson admitted to possessing approximately 223.6 grams of methamphetamine inside the vehicle he was driving when he was stopped by Las Cruces Police Department officers on March 18, 2018.

The Las Cruces Police Department arrested Lawson in March 2018 after finding approximately 274 grams of methamphetamine in his vehicle during a routine traffic stop. At the time of his arrest, Lawson was on supervised release for a prior methamphetamine trafficking felony conviction.

Lawson faces an enhanced penalty of a statutory mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of ten years and a maximum of life, instead of the otherwise applicable five to 40 years of imprisonment, because of his prior felony drug trafficking conviction. He remains in federal custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

The case was investigated by the Las Cruces office of the DEA, the Las Cruces Police Department, and the HIDTA Regional Interagency Drug Task Force/Metro Narcotics Task Force. The HIDTA Regional Interagency Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Las Cruces Police Department, the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, HSI, and the New Mexico State Police.

The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program provides assistance to federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States. The program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 and is overseen by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Lawson’s sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled. He will face a mandatory minimum of ten years in prison and a maximum of life, due to his prior conviction.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is being assisted in the prosecution of Lawson by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark A. Saltman of the Las Cruces Branch Office.

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