Columbia man found guilty of federal drug crime

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man was found guilty on Tuesday in federal court for a drug crime, according to a press release from the Department of Justice.

Michael Hunt, 43, was found guilty of possessing fentanyl with the intent to distribute.

The release says that Hunt was planning to bring fentanyl from Columbia to Springfield, Missouri.

Hunt was driving a black Jeep Renegade southbound on Highway 5 on June 12, 2022, when a Laclede County Sheriff’s deputy stopped him for a moving violation, the release says. A K-9 sniffed out drugs in the Jeep, and Hunt allegedly locked the vehicle and refused to give officers the keys, the release says.

The Jeep was eventually unlocked by a tow company and officers found a gym bag with 300 grams of fentanyl, the release says.