A 36-year-old Wichita, KS, man convicted of conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison.
Justin “Speedy” Morales’ 30 year sentence will be followed by 10 years of supervised release.
The US Attorney’s Office reports federal law enforcement officials learned that Morales was selling methamphetamine in early 2016. During a controlled purchase for five ounces of methamphetamine between Morales and a cooperating witness, Morales was recorded telling the cooperator that he and others sold methamphetamine in several South Dakota cities and at least one Indian reservation in the state. Morales said his plan was to get a house in Sioux Falls that could be used exclusively to store methamphetamine for distribution. In September 2016, the cooperator met with Morales again and Morales was recorded telling the cooperator he was preparing to ship 20 pounds of methamphetamine to Sioux Falls. Morales also said he had rented a small house on the west side of Sioux Falls to store the methamphetamine. The same day, law enforcement was able to recover three pounds of marijuana, two pounds of methamphetamine and a semi-automatic pistol that were connected to Morales and his co-conspirators, Chase Guzman and Daniel Guzman. All three men were arrested in Sioux Falls.
Morales and both Guzmans were indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2016. Both Guzmans pleaded guilty. Chase Guzman was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison and Daniel Guzman was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.
This is Morales’s second felony drug conviction. He has many other arrests and convictions, including a domestic battery charge still pending in Wichita. Morales has been in custody since his arrest and was returned to the custody of the US Marshals Service following the sentencing.
The US Attorney’s Office says the methamphetamine in South Dakota is extremely potent and almost 100 percent pure in most cases. Drug Enforcement Agency experts say that this indicates that the methamphetamine was manufactured in Mexico and transported across the southern border of the United States. This methamphetamine is produced and controlled by drug cartels. Because this methamphetamine is so plentiful, it is incredibly cheap for drug dealers to buy it in bulk and break it up for distribution.
The majority of drug prosecutions in federal court in South Dakota are for methamphetamine. In the past month, in addition to the Morales and Guzman sentences, three more federal criminal defendants in Sioux Falls received prison sentences of 10 years, 10 years, and 25 years, respectively, for their participation in large-scale methamphetamine conspiracies. These individuals were part of three separate drug distribution operations and each defendant was involved in distributing over one pound of methamphetamine in the Sioux Falls area. Each pound of methamphetamine provides over 1,000 doses for typical methamphetamine users.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Sioux Falls Police Department; Sioux Falls Area Drug Task Force; and the South Dakota Highway Patrol.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all US Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.
