BOISE, Idaho — A Missouri man has been sentenced to a decade in federal prison for operating a large-scale cocaine distribution network in Idaho, federal prosecutors announced.
William Charles Jones, 34, of St. Louis, Missouri, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for his role in trafficking cocaine throughout the Treasure Valley, according to U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis.
Court documents show Jones was a high-volume cocaine supplier who regularly traveled to Missouri to obtain kilogram quantities of cocaine. Prosecutors said he shipped the drugs to himself in Idaho, where they were distributed through mid-level dealers. In one instance, Jones traveled to Canada to purchase two kilograms of cocaine, which were seized by authorities at the U.S.-Canada border.
After Jones was indicted, investigators executed a federal search warrant at his residence. Inside the garage, agents found a drug-processing workstation containing a scale, packaging materials, and a heat sealer. Authorities also recovered approximately one and a half kilograms of cocaine in brick form, five one-ounce bundles of cocaine, multiple psilocybin mushroom bars, and 16 firearms that were unlawfully possessed and placed throughout the home.
U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Jones to serve four years of supervised release following his prison sentence.
Federal officials credited a multi-agency investigation involving the Drug Enforcement Administration, Nampa Police Department Special Investigations Unit, Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Boise Police Department, Meridian Police Department, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service for bringing the case to a close.
