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Meth Conspiracy Rocks Southwest Missouri
A major methamphetamine distribution ring that spanned six counties in southwest Missouri has been dismantled after one of its key players, Kenneth R. Friend, 48, of Springfield, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
According to federal court records, Friend’s guilty plea was entered before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool on Friday, April 5. Friend faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole, for his role in the conspiracy.
The investigation, which was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), discovered that Friend obtained large amounts of methamphetamine from various sources, including one supplier from whom he paid $20,000 in early November 2014 for two pounds of the drug. Friend also intended to purchase a large amount of methamphetamine from this supplier on Nov. 27, 2014.
Law enforcement officers arrested Friend, his then-girlfriend, and one of his suppliers during the execution of a federal search warrant at the supplier’s residence in Springfield. Agents found approximately $20,000 and approximately five and a half pounds of methamphetamine, which Friend admitted he intended to purchase.
As part of the plea agreement, Friend must forfeit $34,310 that he had intended to use to purchase the two pounds of methamphetamine, as well as his 1992 Harley Davidson motorcycle, which he used to distribute methamphetamine and purchased with proceeds from the sale of methamphetamine.
This case is one of the largest methamphetamine distribution rings to be dismantled in southwest Missouri. A total of 29 defendants have been charged in the case, and 27 of those defendants have already been sentenced.
The case was investigated by the DEA, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Springfield Police Department, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Randall D. Eggert, Nhan D. Nguyen, and Cynthia J. Hyde.
Key Facts
- State: Missouri
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Crime|Public Safety|Law Enforcement
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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