FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
CURTIS JONES PLEADS GUILTY IN U.S. FEDERAL COURT
Bill Mercer, United States Attorney for the District of Montana, announced today that during a federal court session in Billings on October 31, 2007, before U.S. District Judge Richard F. Cebull, CURTIS JONES, a 38-year-old resident of Billings, pled guilty to possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. Sentencing is set for February 8, 2008. He is currently detained.
At the change of plea proceeding, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
From late 2004 until approximately January or February of 2005, JONES was in possession of a firearm, a black semi-automatic handgun, while involved in a conspiracy with other individuals to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine.
JONES faces possible penalties of a mandatory 5 years in prison and could be sentenced to life in prison, a $250,000 fine and 5 years supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney James E. Seykora prosecuted the case for the United States.
The investigation was conducted by the Billings Big Sky Safe Streets Task Force.
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