Jury convicts California man of meth conspiracy
Tom Larson, acting United States attorney for the Western District of Missouri announced on Wednesday that Dijon Brown was convicted for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine that was shipped to Columbia through the mail.
In 2015, postal inspectors identified a suspicious parcel that was mailed from California to co-defendants Zachary Fennell, 39, and Melissa Guerra, 35.
Postal workers suspected the packaged contained a controlled substance. Federal agents recovered 444.8 grams of pure methamphetamine, valued at more than $11,000 from the parcel.
Federal agents executed a controlled delivery of the package and conducted a surveillance of the residence.
Officers saw Brown and another person get out of a vehicle and take the parcel inside.
A SWAT team and Boone County deputies executed a search warrant at the house but were unable to get through the front door because Brown ran and shut it.
Officers said they saw Brown and others running out of the back door attempting to escape law enforcement.
Brown was apprehended hiding in a pool shed approximately one-quarter to a half-mile away.
Police said the manhunt briefly shut down a nearby elementary school.
Officers found three loaded guns, a small amount of methamphetamine and various documents that appeared to be ledgers for narcotics transactions.
The jury deliberated for less than two hours before coming to the guilty verdict for Brown. Seven co-defendants in the case have pleaded guilty and are waiting for sentencing.
Brown is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole and up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole.
