Christopher Craig Johnson, Heroin Possession, Montana 2015

State: Montana
Category: Drug Trafficking
Source: <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-mt/pr/washington-man-sentenced-10-years-prison-heroin-possession" style="color:#cc0000;" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">DOJ Press Release ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Â Ã¢â‚¬â€

GREAT FALLS, Montana – A Washington man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for his conviction of possessing heroin for distribution.

Christopher Craig Johnson, 36, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute heroin.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Johnson was arrested in July 2015 after a car crash in Great Falls, in which he and another person fled the scene. A passenger at the scene told officers that the vehicle belonged to Johnson, that he had brought methamphetamine and heroin from Washington on the trip and had the drugs when they arrived in Great Falls. Johnson had sold some of the meth in town and had planned to go to Browning to distribute drugs but got into the crash.

Further investigation led to Johnson’s arrest. A search warrant led to the seizure of meth and a small amount of heroin from his Great Falls residence. Law enforcement officers then executed a search warrant on Johnson’s wrecked vehicle and seized heroin. A Drug Enforcement Administration lab determined the drugs seized totaled 82.8 grams of pure meth and 18.17 grams of heroin.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Betley said Johnson was a serious danger to the community and that he had at least 10 prior felony convictions, including holding up individuals at gunpoint during a robbery and drug distribution and possession offenses.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office is partnering with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement to identify those responsible for significant violent crime in Montana through Project Safe Neighborhoods, a Department of Justice program that has proven to be successful in reducing violent crime.

Johnson was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison and three years of supervised release. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Russell Country Drug Task Force.