Three Men Sentenced for Trafficking Meth and Fentanyl in Idaho

Three men on Santa’s naughty list in Idaho will be serving time in federal prison for possession of drugs with the intent to sell. The convictions and sentences are from separate drug trafficking cases.

Combined, the 3 men will serve 9 and a half years in federal prison plus 3 years of supervised release for each of them.

3 Drug Traffickers Sentenced for Meth and Fentanyl in Idaho

The announcement was made on Wednesday, December 4th on the DOJ website that the 3 men in Idaho Falls had been sentenced. Those men are 45-year-old Jesus Rosas, 43-year-old Brandon Luce, and 51-year-old Darren Payne. Though the press release was just sent out today, all three men received their sentences in late November.

Jesus Rosas Sentenced to 4.5 Years For Drug Trafficking in Idaho

Rojas was sentenced on November 25th to 55 months in federal prison for possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. In January, Rosas was pulled over for a traffic violation.

Police found a handgun in the car with Rosas and a glass pipe, small clear bags, and two bags containing 35.9 grams of methamphetamine in his jacket pocket. Rosas has previous drug and theft convictions. After his time in prison, he will serve 3 years of supervised release.

A passenger in the car at the time had several warrants and fled the scene. While fleeing, the man shot at police - who returned fire. The passenger later died from his injuries.

Brandon Luce Sentenced to 3 Years For Drug Trafficking in Idaho

Luce was sentenced on November 21st to 37 months in federal prison for selling drugs in early 2022. On 2 separate occasions, he sold meth a total of just over 83 grams of meth. His prior criminal convictions include driving offenses, theft, violence, and drug possession. Luce will also be required to serve 3 years of supervised release when his prison sentence ends.

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Darren Payne Sentenced to 2 Years For Drug Trafficking in Idaho

The third man, Darren Payne, was sentenced on November 25th to 24 months in federal prison for possession of fentanyl with the intent to distribute. In mid-January, while serving a warrant, police found various amounts and types of drugs. The press release lists the following:

Hundreds of light blue M30 pills tucked inside the bottom of a shoe. These were counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl.
A bag containing a box of suboxone, multiple small bags, and glass pipes.
A green bottle containing small purple pills imprinted K57, Oxycodone Hydrochloride; heroin; and cocaine in a bedroom of the house.
3 individually packaged light blue M30 pills which appeared to be for sale.
Payne possessed 76.8 grams of fentanyl for distribution.

Payne has previous convictions for drug possession and passing bad checks.

The 8 Largest Drug Busts Ever Made in Idaho

Our officers have done a great job of keeping our streets clean over the years. Here's a look at some of the largest (and most expensive) drug busts in the history of Idaho.

Gallery Credit: Chris Cardenas