A 50-year-old New York man who was convicted on charges associated with drug possession has been sentenced to 51 months in jail. He had been convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five or more grams of methamphetamine.
On Oct. 27, 2016, authorities in Hamburg ran surveillance on a motel where the convicted man and a second man were staying after receiving a tip about potential drug trafficking activities occurring there. They conducted a traffic stop on the convicted man at about 9:15 when he left the motel. During a search of his vehicle, authorities reportedly found methamphetamine. They also conducted a search of the motel room. During this search, the police reportedly recovered more containers full of meth, drug packaging materials and several phones.
The man pleaded guilty to charges in May 2017. He faced a mandatory minimum penalty of five years and a maximum of 40 years in prison. He also additionally faced a maximum $5 million fine. The other man involved in the case was also convicted on drug charges. He was scheduled to be sentenced in November.
Drug trafficking can have some steep legal penalties due to the mandatory minimum sentences. For example, those who are convicted on felony drug charges will be sentenced to prison even if they are first-time offenders. Even if it appears that the prosecution has a strong case against an accused person, a criminal law attorney could still find fault with their strategy. This may include finding weaknesses in the police officers’ testimony or demonstrating that the evidence presented to the court does not back the allegations being made by the prosecution.
Source: WKBW, “Man busted in Hamburg with meth gets sentenced“, Aug. 29, 2017
Source: Democrat & Chronicle, “Webster man pleads guilty to methamphetamine charge“, Patti Singer, May 17, 2017