James Patrick Pardee II, Methamphetamine Distribution, Missouri 2019
A St. Joseph, Missouri man has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for leading a $2.1 million conspiracy that distributed more than 100 kilograms of methamphetamine in Buchanan, Clinton, and Nodaway counties.
James Patrick Pardee II, 29, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 15 years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Pardee to pay the government a money judgment of $2.1 million, which represents the amount of money received in exchange for the unlawful distribution of methamphetamine.
Pardee pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from Jan. 1, 2015, to Nov. 16, 2017, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was arrested following a high-speed chase on Sept. 23, 2017, after Plattsburg, Missouri, police officers attempted to conduct a traffic stop for a lane violation on a black Audi A4 driven by Pardee.
Pardee fled from officers at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour for approximately nine miles, until his vehicle crashed into a guardrail. Pardee and a female passenger got out of the vehicle; Pardee was arrested and the female passenger escaped. Officers found a backpack inside the vehicle that contained numerous clear plastic baggies with a total of more than 2.1 kilograms of methamphetamine.
Pardee admitted that he had sold more than three kilograms of methamphetamine every other day for the past three months. This case is the second defendant to be sentenced, with Michael Robert Ramsel receiving a 13-year and six-month sentence.
Eleeseea Leeann Crail, Johnathan Scott Graf, and Adam Christopher Lowe, all of St. Joseph, have pleaded guilty to the same charges and await sentencing. The case was investigated by multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Plattsburg, Missouri, Police Department.
The exact criminal charges against Pardee include conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was arrested on Sept. 23, 2017, and sentenced on an exact date not provided. Pardee's current sentence is 15 years in federal prison without parole.
The dollar amount involved in the conspiracy is $2.1 million, which represents the amount of money received in exchange for the unlawful distribution of methamphetamine. Pardee was ordered to pay this amount as part of his sentence.
Key Facts
- State: Missouri
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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