Roger Wade Anderson Gets 20 Years for Meth, Guns

Colorado Springs man Roger Wade Anderson is headed to federal prison for 240 months—20 years—after being caught red-handed with nearly 10 pounds of 100 percent pure methamphetamine and two loaded firearms, including a stolen .357 revolver. The sentence, handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello on October 18, 2016, includes an additional 5 years of supervised release. Anderson, who pled guilty to felon in possession of a firearm and possession with intent to distribute meth, was remanded into custody immediately following the hearing.

Anderson’s criminal run began unravelling on July 24, 2015, when law enforcement received multiple credible tips that a man named Roger Anderson was making regular cross-state trips to Glendale, Arizona, to pick up massive quantities of meth. Surveillance confirmed the pattern: Anderson would drive his red Ford F250 to Arizona, stay in a prepaid hotel room, and return to Colorado Springs via I-25—each time smuggling drugs in a modified cooler with insulated walls. On one such return trip, cops pulled him over and found plastic baggies of meth in both front pockets during a pat-down.

The search escalated quickly. A Colorado Springs Police Officer deployed a drug-certified canine, which alerted at the passenger-side door and the camper shell in the truck’s bed. A warrant was issued, and agents discovered a cooler packed with fish and ice—camouflage for ten hidden packages of high-purity meth totaling just under 10 pounds. Investigators later searched Anderson’s home, where they seized additional methamphetamine, amphetamine, drug paraphernalia, a 12-gauge shotgun in plain view, and a .357 revolver locked in a black safe. Records confirmed the revolver had been reported stolen.

Anderson was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on March 10, 2016. He entered a guilty plea on July 18, 2016, admitting to both the drug and gun charges. His cooperation did not spare him from the full weight of federal sentencing guidelines, especially given his status as a convicted felon unlawfully possessing firearms and the sheer volume of narcotics involved. The court deemed the crimes a direct threat to public safety and community stability.

“Methamphetamine is a lethal poison,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Bob Troyer. “Armed dealers bringing that poison into Colorado communities will go to federal prison for a long, long time.” ATF Denver Field Division Special Agent in Charge Ken Croke added, “Anderson was a major player in the cycle of violence and drugs in southern Colorado, making multiple trips a month to pump more meth into southern Colorado. The number of lives he has ruined, both addicts and their loved ones, is incalculable.”

The investigation was a joint operation between the ATF’s Colorado Springs office, the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, and the Colorado Springs Police Department—a coordinated strike against a man federal prosecutors say was fueling addiction and crime across the region. Anderson was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kurt Bohn. Authorities say the case exemplifies how federal and local agencies are closing in on traffickers who exploit interstate routes to flood communities with deadly drugs and weapons.