Jason Benjamin O’Bryan, Methamphetamine Distribution and Firearms Possession, Alaska 2023

A Fairbanks man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for attempting to distribute 897 grams of methamphetamine and possessing nine firearms. Jason Benjamin O’Bryan, 30, was sentenced on April 14, 2023, by Senior District Judge Ralph R. Beistline of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska.

On March 9, 2021, agents from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) received a suspicious package containing 897 grams of methamphetamine. USPIS obtained a search warrant for the package and seized the methamphetamine. In a controlled delivery, law enforcement replaced the methamphetamine with ‘sham’ drugs and observed O’Bryan retrieve the package and take it inside his residence.

An hour later, surveillance observed O’Bryan leave the residence in his truck. Law enforcement initiated a traffic stop and searched the vehicle, finding 50 grams of methamphetamine, 1 gram of heroin, and multiple fentanyl patches and pills. A subsequent search of O’Bryan’s residence resulted in the seizure of additional methamphetamine, heroin, and nine firearms.

O’Bryan later confessed that he sold methamphetamine in Fairbanks and intended to distribute the 897 grams. As a prior felon, O’Bryan admitted that he knew it was illegal for him to possess the nine firearms.

O’Bryan previously pled guilty to attempted possession and distribution of the 897 grams of methamphetamine and felon in possession of multiple firearms.

U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker announced the sentence. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), North Slope Borough Police Department, Fairbanks Police Department (FPD), North Pole Police Department (NPD), and Alaska State Troopers (AST) investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan Tansey and Carly Vosacek prosecuted the case.

O’Bryan was sentenced to 121 months of imprisonment followed by five years of supervised release. The case is a prime example of the dangers of methamphetamine distribution and the importance of law enforcement’s efforts to combat these crimes.