SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A West Plains, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court yesterday for distributing methamphetamine and illegally possessing a firearm.
Dale Wayne Martin, 50, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark to 240 months in federal prison without parole.
On June 24, 2021, Martin pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Howell County, Mo., from Feb. 3 to Dec. 13, 2018, and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.
On Feb. 3, 2018, law enforcement officers searched Martin’s residence. Officers found a loaded Taurus .357-caliber revolver under the pillow of his bed. Officers also found less than a gram of methamphetamine, $8,010 in cash, fentanyl in a sealed package, two packages of Suboxone, 22 capsules of Dronabinol, counter-surveillance equipment, assorted ammunition, a night vision scope, body armor, and drug paraphernalia.
On Aug. 17, 2018, law enforcement officers searched Martin’s residence again. Officers found three firearms, less than one gram of methamphetamine, syringes filled with clear liquids, assorted caliber ammunition, counter-surveillance equipment, drug paraphernalia, and $5,472 in cash. Officers also found more than 20 drywall joint compound tubs on the premises. Each of the tubs was sealed, but only approximately half full. Martin later admitted to using the drywall joint compound tubs to conceal methamphetamine and stated he could fit one half kilogram in each tub.
On Dec. 13, 2018, law enforcement officers searched Martin’s hotel room at the Quality Inn in West Plains. Officers found a total of $10,008 in cash in Martin’s wallet and inside a McDonald’s bag on the end table next to the bed. Officers also found a purple Crown Royal bag above the bathroom ceiling tiles that contained 95.6 grams of pure methamphetamine, as well as a pill bottle that contained assorted prescription medication.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica R. Eatmon. It was investigated by the West Plains, Mo., Police Department, the Howell County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the South Central Drug Task Force, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
