Madras, Portland men convicted in meth trafficking ring
A federal jury in Eugene has found two men, from Madras and Portland, guilty of trafficking methamphetamine from Southern California to distribute in Central Oregon and the Portland area, U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams announced Monday.
Last Friday, Ronald Wayne Thrasher, 49, of Madras, was found guilty of purchasing and transporting methamphetamine for distribution. Thrasher’s supplier, Russell Marvin Jones, 53, of Gresham, was found guilty of selling methamphetamine and possessing a stolen firearm. Both men were also found guilty of being felons in possession of a firearm, prosecutors said.
Thrasher and Jones have each served time in prison for past convictions. Thrasher served time in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm and Jones in an Oregon state prison for first-degree manslaughter.
Nine co-defendants have previously pleaded guilty to conspiring with Thrasher to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and are awaiting sentencing: Jordan Michael Johnson, 57, of San Diego; Brenda Ann Lederman, 46, of Santee, California; Jason James Puckett, 46, of Prineville; Tyler Wayne Fuller, 30, Renee Marie Scarlett, 48, and Talina Shantel Ortiz, 45, of Madras; Jacklin Renee Bowlby, 36, of Bend; Kerry Wayne Hopson, 33, of Redmond; and Mistie Dawn Cooper, 39, of Alfalfa.
Fuller also pleaded guilty to robbing a bank in Madras in 2017. on the day of the total solar eclipse.
According to court documents and testimony produced at trial, in the spring of 2016, Thrasher became acquainted with several co-defendants who were engaged in trafficking methamphetamine from Santee, San Diego and Portland for resale in Central Oregon. Thrasher used these connections to establish a source of supply for his own methamphetamine use and distribution, prosecutors said.
In early 2017, after his primary supplier was arrested in Redmond, an associate introduced Thrasher to Jones, a methamphetamine manufacturer, dealer and user in the Portland.
On or about Feb. 17, 2017, Thrasher traveled to Portland with his associates to meet Jones. During this meeting, Jones sold Thrasher several pounds of methamphetamine. On March 20, 2017, after several additional meth deals, Jones sold Thrasher a stolen firearm.
By April of 2017, Thrasher was distributing meth through several associates throughout Central Oregon. On April 9, 2017, he was introduced to new California-based methamphetamine suppliers, including Stevens. Two weeks later, Thrasher and an associate drove to Santee to meet with his new suppliers. During this meeting, Thrasher purchased about 13 pounds of meth from Stevens, prosecutors said.
In May 2017, a Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE) team investigation identified Thrasher as a high-volume methamphetamine supplier and distributor.
On May 29, 2017, CODE detectives assisted by a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent arrested Thrasher and seized about 16 pounds of methamphetamine, $16,000 in cash, records of drug sales and the stolen firearm from his home in Madras.
Thrasher and Jones will be sentenced on Feb. 4, 2020 and Nov. 14, 2019, respectively, before U.S. District Court Judge Michael J. McShane.
This case was investigated by CODE, DEA, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Oregon State Police. It was prosecuted Frank R. Papagni Jr. and Judi Harper, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the District of Oregon, with the assistance of the Jefferson, Crook and Deschutes County District Attorney’s Offices.
