Two Columbia Residents Plead Guilty to Meth Trafficking

 Officers Also Found a Dozen Firearms in Their Residence

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Two Columbia, Missouri, residents have pleaded guilty in federal court to methamphetamine trafficking after they received a large package of methamphetamine shipped from California to distribute locally.

Bryan Patton Tullous, 39, pleaded guilty today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Willie J. Epps, Jr., to participating in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

Co-defendant Cassiopeia Marie Blaise, 36, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, Aug. 31, to possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.

On April 26, 2019, law enforcement officers intercepted a package from California that had been shipped to the residence shared by Tullous and Blaise. The package contained approximately 5.6 pounds of methamphetamine in five individual packages that weighed approximately one pound (453 grams) each, for a total of 2.209 kilograms of methamphetamine. Officers conducted surveillance of the residence as the package was delivered to the front porch. Both Tullous and Blaise were outside; Blaise retrieved the package and took it inside the residence while Tullous was in a neighbor’s yard. Officers took both of them into custody and executed a search warrant of the residence. Officers found the opened package hidden under clothing at the foot of the bed in the master bedroom.

Officers also found a dozen firearms in various areas of the residence, including a loaded Smith & Wesson .380-caliber pistol laying near the package in the bedroom. In a safe in the garage, officers found a Mossberg .22-caliber rifle, a Snake Charmer 410 shotgun, a Browning .223-caliber rifle, a Bear River .38-caliber revolver, and a Charter Arms .38-caliber revolver. The Snake Charmer 410 shotgun had the stock cut off, making it useable as a pistol grip-type weapon.

Tullous admitted that he ordered the package and paid $12,000 for the methamphetamine.

Under federal statutes, Tullous is 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. Blaise is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of 40 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.

This case is being prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael S. Oliver. It was investigated by the East Central Drug Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the Columbia, Mo., Police Department.