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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
May 20, 2008
MAN FROM VALLEY FALLS, KAN. , PLEADS GUILTY TO GROWING POT
TOPEKA, KAN. – Michael J. Leslie, 50, Valley Falls, Kan., pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court Tuesday to two counts of possession with intent to distribute marijuana.
In his plea, Leslie admitted that investigators found 37 live marijuana plants and 20 pounds of processed marijuana when they served a search warrant Nov. 13, 2007, at his home in Valley Falls, Kan. Other articles they seized included 20 grow lights, 30 bags of Miracle Grow, a carbon dioxide generator, dehumidifiers, 39 pairs of scissors and other tools for growing and processing marijuana.
According to Leslie’s plea, investigators learned of his drug trafficking activities during spring 2007 when undercover agents were conducting an investigation into an alleged methamphetamine trafficking operation in Topeka, Kan., headed by Frutoso Montoya-Gastelum, Elena Penafort, and Roberto Guadiana-Carrasco. Investigators recorded phone calls in which Leslie arranged to obtain cocaine from Guadiana-Carrasco. Penafort, Guadiana-Carrasco, Montoya-Gastelum and others were charged in a related case with drug trafficking.
Leslie is set for sentencing Aug. 26, 2008. He faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren commended the Drug Enforcement Administration and Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Hough for their work on the case.
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