Joseph Allen Conner, Fentanyl Trafficking, Montana 2024

GREAT FALLS, MT – Joseph Allen Conner, 40, of Yakima, Washington, is headed to federal prison for five years after admitting to a large-scale fentanyl trafficking operation that saturated cities across Montana. Conner, also known as “Street,” was sentenced Wednesday by Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris, with an additional five years of supervised release tacked onto the term.

The bust, a collaborative effort between the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Great Falls Police Department, and the Russell Country Drug Task Force, revealed a sophisticated network for distributing the deadly opioid. Federal agents raided Conner’s Washington residence in June 2023, uncovering a stash of pills, a money counter—evidence of a robust business—and a disturbing collection of firearms and ammunition.

Court documents paint a grim picture of Conner’s activities, dating back to September 2022. The defendant made repeated trips into Montana, hitting Great Falls, Missoula, Lincoln, and Haugen, peddling fentanyl and other controlled substances. The scope of his operation was staggering, with investigators discovering he distributed “buckets full” of pills to multiple sources. He wasn’t limiting distribution to in-person deals; Conner also shipped large quantities of fentanyl via mail.

One witness described seeing Conner with a “volleyball size bag” of pills, a testament to the sheer volume of narcotics he was moving. A search of a vehicle operated by one of Conner’s co-conspirators yielded approximately 1,500 fentanyl pills and methamphetamine, directly linked back to the Washington man. The government successfully argued Conner conspired to distribute and possess the drugs with intent to distribute, securing the guilty plea in December 2023.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara J. Elliott spearheaded the prosecution. This case is being touted as a win for Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a federal program aiming to reduce violent crime and gun violence, but for the families impacted by fentanyl addiction, it’s a small measure of justice in a continuing crisis. The program focuses on building trust with communities, supporting preventative organizations, and strategic enforcement.

Conner’s five-year sentence serves as a stark warning: trafficking fentanyl in Montana—or anywhere in this country—carries significant consequences. While this conviction takes one dealer off the streets, the relentless flow of illicit fentanyl continues to plague communities nationwide, demanding continued, aggressive law enforcement action.

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