Jeremy Orvil Johnson, a 37-year-old resident of Blackfoot, has been sentenced to over six years in federal prison for distributing fentanyl and methamphetamine. This was announced by U.S. Attorney Josh Hurwit.
Court records indicate that on January 11, 2024, law enforcement officers stopped Johnson for speeding and not displaying a license plate. Before stopping the vehicle, officers saw him discard an item from the car onto the highway shoulder. They later found a sock in the snow containing 347 grams of fentanyl and 39.6 grams of methamphetamine.
Senior U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill ordered Johnson to serve five years of supervised release after his prison term. Johnson admitted guilt to the charge in September 2024.
U.S. Attorney Hurwit praised the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office for their investigation leading to these charges. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Zoie Laggis prosecuted the case.
The case was managed by the U.S. Attorney Office’s specially deputized Special Assistant U.S. Attorney (SAUSA), funded by the Eastern Idaho Partnership (EIP) and the State of Idaho. The EIP is a coalition involving local city and county officials in Eastern Idaho as well as the Idaho Department of Correction.
The EIP SAUSA program enables law enforcement to utilize the federal criminal justice system to prosecute, convict, and sentence violent criminals and drug traffickers who often face harsher penalties than they might in state courts.
Since its inception in January 2016, approximately 175 defendants have been indicted under this program, with 152 facing drug trafficking charges. These defendants have collectively received sentences totaling around 903 years in federal prison, averaging about six years per defendant for drug trafficking offenses.