A Missouri man has been convicted by a federal trial jury of his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
Jason M. Potter, 40, of Braymer, was found guilty on Thursday, Feb. 16, of one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.
Evidence presented during the trial indicated that Potter and co-defendant Daniel Dryden, 51, of Clinton, Mo., participated in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from May 11 to July 15, 2020. Dryden pleaded guilty to the same charges on Jan. 13, 2023.
Lee’s Summit, Mo., police officers saw Potter’s black 2009 Nissan Maxima parked in a motel parking lot on July 15, 2020. When Potter and Dryden came out of the hotel, Potter placed a black computer case and a blue cloth shopping bag in the rear passenger seat of the Maxima. Potter went back into the hotel while Dryden drove the Maxima to the front of the business, near the lobby doors. Potter came out of the hotel and got into the front passenger seat of the Maxima. Dryden drove out of the parking lot onto Blue Parkway.
Officers stopped the Maxima and arrested Potter, who had an outstanding parole warrant. Potter had 4.8 grams of methamphetamine and $3,610 in cash at the time of his arrest.
Officers searched the Maxima and found the computer bag, which contained several baggies with a total of 648.6 grams of methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, and a money bag with more than $3,000 in cash.
Following the presentation of evidence, the jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for about 40 minutes before returning guilty verdicts to U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark, ending a trial that began Monday, Feb. 13.
Under federal statutes, Potter and Dryden each are subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen A. Brackett and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephanie C. Bradshaw. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Lee’s Summit, Mo., Police Department, and the Springfield, Mo., Police Department.
