Two men plead guilty to drug charges

A Pablo man who admitted to trafficking fentanyl pills in the community was sentenced Dec. 1 to four years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, according to U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich. U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided.

Donald Ray McLeod, 38, pleaded guilty in July to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

In court documents, the government alleged that on Dec. 20, 2021, McLeod fled from an attempted traffic stop in Lake County and was arrested following a crash. In a search of the vehicle, officer located a large amount of fentanyl pills, $6,070 in U.S. currency and a .380-caliber pistol. McLeod admitted to investigators that he sold pills to make money and estimated he traveled nearly two times a month for more than one year to Spokane to pick up from 250 to 500 pills each trip. The investigation found that the pills seized contained 358 fentanyl pills.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer S. Clark prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Northwest Drug Task Force.

Also in Judge Molloy’s court, a Butte man who admitted to trafficking methamphetamine in Lake County was sentenced Dec. 1 to 66 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Gary David Conan, 42, pleaded guilty in August to distribution of meth.

The government alleged in court documents that in April 2020, officers with the Northwest Drug Task Force stopped Conan’s vehicle after he distributed meth and recovered approximately 94 grams of additional pure meth. Conan was indicted for this conduct and was released on conditions.

Conan did not report to U.S. Probation and was at large until he was arrested by the Butte Police Department in October 2021 on drug charges.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara J. Elliott prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Northwest Drug Task Force and Montana Highway Patrol.