⏱ 2 min read
Patrick William Allen, a 55-year-old Spokane, Washington man, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for possessing a firearm while intending to distribute fentanyl in Missoula, Montana. Allen pleaded guilty in February 2026 to one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The guilty plea came after investigators found Allen with over half a pound of fentanyl, as well as meth and crack cocaine, in his hotel room at the Broadway Inn Hotel in Missoula.
According to court documents, Allen was a high-level supplier of fentanyl in the Missoula area, regularly transporting the illicit drug into the state from Washington. An informant tipped off investigators on January 23, 2026, that Allen was bringing drugs into the area, and a second source confirmed that Allen was in Missoula and staying at the Broadway Inn Hotel.
When agents searched Allen’s hotel room, they found a loaded gun in his suitcase, as well as the large quantities of fentanyl, meth, and crack cocaine. Allen admitted that the drugs and gun belonged to him, and that the woman he was with was not involved. The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI’s Montana Regional Violent Crime Task Force.
The sentence is part of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods initiative, which aims to combat violent crime and make communities safer. Allen’s 10-year sentence will be followed by four years of supervised release.
📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Drug Trafficking
- Defendant: Montana
- Location: MT
- Source: DOJ Press Release
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