Elderly Man Sentenced In Meth Ring
An elderly man in southwest Missouri will most likely die in prison carrying out the 15 year sentence he was handed for trafficking meth. 71-year-old Guadalupe Urbina-Rodriguez of Purdy, who already has four prior drug-trafficking convictions, has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for his role in a large meth ring in Springfield.
Urbina-Rodriguez was taken down when the post office notified the police of a package containing nearly a pound of pure meth addressed to him from a fake address in California. When the package was delivered to him, Urbina-Rodriguez was sitting in the front yard waiting for it with a rifle sitting beside him. Police then executed a search warrant at his home.
Press release from Department of Justice:
A Purdy, Mo., man was sentenced in federal court today for possessing methamphetamine to distribute and illegally possessing a firearm.
Guadalupe Urbina-Rodriguez, 71, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to 15 years in federal prison without parole.
Urbina-Rodriguez was found guilty at trial on March 26, 2019, of possessing methamphetamine to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
A federal postal inspector seized a package on Aug. 31, 2018, that was addressed to Urbina-Rodriguez’s address. The package, which contained 430.8 grams of pure methamphetamine, was purportedly mailed from a nonexistent address in California. The postal inspector delivered the package to Urbina-Rodriguez, who was sitting in a chair under a tree in the front yard. Urbina-Rodriguez had a loaded Marlin .22-caliber rifle sitting beside him. Law enforcements officers then executed a search warrant of the residence and seized the package.
According to court documents, Urbina-Rodriguez was involved in a large-scale conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from California to various places across the country, including Missouri. Twelve additional packages originating in California were delivered to Urbina-Rodriguez’s residence in 2018. When the packages arrived, two women retrieved them from Urbina-Rodriguez. He received a cash payment each month in exchange for accepting packages.
Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition. Urbina-Rodriguez has four prior felony convictions related to drug trafficking or possessing a controlled substance and a prior felony conviction for maintaining a public nuisance.
This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica R. Keller and Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall D. Eggert. It was investigated by the Ozarks Drug Enforcement Team, the Cassville, Mo., Police Department, the Barry County, Mo., Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.