Jury Convicts Joplin Man of Meth Conspiracy

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Joplin, Mo., man has been convicted by a federal trial jury of leading a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Jasper County, Mo.

 Donald B. Loomis, 36, was found guilty on Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2018, of participating in a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine in Jasper County from March 1, 2015, to Sept. 24, 2016.

Law enforcement officers began investigating methamphetamine trafficking in the Joplin area in April 2015, focusing on a violent gang that identified themselves as the Joplin Honkeys. Evidence introduced at trial indicated that Loomis, a member of the Joplin Honkeys, was the leader of a drug-trafficking organization and supplied multiple pounds of methamphetamine per week to distribute to others in the Joplin area.

Loomis is among five defendants convicted in this case. Co-defendants Kelly C. Walker, 46, of Joplin, and Alisha D. Courtney, 48, and Terrance E. Romero, 43, both of Webb City, Mo., have pleaded guilty to their roles in the drug-trafficking conspiracy. Romero also pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in relation to a drug-trafficking crime. Co-defendant Lisa M. Allison, 40, of Neosho, Mo., pleaded guilty to distributing methamphetamine.

Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Springfield, Mo., deliberated for about an hour before returning the guilty verdict to U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool on Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2018, ending a trial that began Monday, Nov. 5, 2018.

Under federal statutes, Loomis is subject to a mandatory sentence of life in federal prison without parole due to his prior felony convictions. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Abram McGull, II, and Josephine L. Stockard. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI, the Ozarks Drug Enforcement Team, the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the Webb City, Mo., Police Department, the Newton County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Jasper County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Jasper County, Mo., Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and the Newton County, Mo., Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.