Judge sentences St. Louis man for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine

 ST. LOUIS – United States District Judge Ronnie L. White sentenced LeVaughn Neal to 156 months in prison today. The 36-year-old St. Louis, Missouri resident pleaded guilty, in October, to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

Investigators with the Drug Enforcement Administration learned, in August 2019, Neal and a co-defendant were involved in significant methamphetamine distribution in the St. Louis area. The United States Postal Inspection Service, at the same time, was conducting surveillance of suspicious packages mailed from Arizona to St. Louis.

On October 17, 2019, postal inspectors intercepted a suspicious package mailed from Scottsdale, Arizona to a vacant home in Jennings, Missouri. The addressee was not associated with the vacant home. DEA agents conducted surveillance on the vacant house and saw Neal parked in a vehicle near the house. The DEA conducted a controlled delivery of the package and left it on the front porch of the vacant house. Agents then watched Neal get out of a vehicle and pick-up the package off the porch.

Agents tried to arrest Neal, but he dropped the package and ran. Agents eventually arrested Neal and executed a search warrant to search the package. Inside the package, agents found zip-lock bags of crystal methamphetamine wrapped in duct tape and a vacuum-sealed bag inside bubble wrap. Neal admitted he chose the vacant address for delivery and the package should contain five pounds of methamphetamine. A forensics lab confirmed the package contained 2,217 grams of crystal methamphetamine, a Schedule II controlled substance. Neal ultimately admitted to being responsible for distributing between 1.5 kilograms and 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine.

The Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Postal Inspection Service investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorney Paul D’Agrosa is handling the case.