Washington Man Sentenced for Trafficking Meth in Idaho

COEUR D’ALENE, ID—Jason Paul Patrick, 33, of Federal Way, Washington, was sentenced today to 140 months in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in the District of Idaho, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Patrick was sentenced at the federal courthouse in Coeur d’Alene by U.S. District Judge Howard D. McKibben from the District of Nevada. He pleaded guilty to the charge on October 19, 2011. According to the plea agreement, between August 2010 and June of 20 11, Patrick conspired with other individuals to provide methamphetamine to persons living in Idaho.

According to the plea agreement, Patrick’s customers, on average, traveled twice a week from Idaho to western Washington to pick up the methamphetamine, which was then transported back to Idaho. Patrick admitted that the amount of methamphetamine involved was between one-and-a-half and five kilograms.

“Methamphetamine trafficking is a threat to the health and safety of Idaho’s communities,” said Olson. “With our law enforcement partners, we are committed to addressing this threat through aggressive investigations, strong prosecutions, and stiff sentences. Mr. Patrick’s conduct was well deserving of his lengthy prison sentence.”

The case was investigated by the North Idaho Violent Crime Task Force (NIVCTF), whose members include the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Idaho State Police, Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office, Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office, Bonner County Sheriff’s Office, Coeur d’Alene Police Department, Post Falls Police Department, and the Coeur d’Alene Tribal Police Department. The NIVCTF investigates a myriad of violent crimes, including armed robbery, kidnapping, felonious assault, and drug trafficking.