PIKEVILLE, Ky. – Christopher Francisco, 30, of Boyle County, Kentucky, was sentenced last week to 322 months in federal prison, by United States District Judge Robert Wier, for possession with the intent to distribute over 500 grams of methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.
According to his plea agreement, law enforcement stopped Francisco’s vehicle in Floyd County, Kentucky, on February 11, 2020, and found approximately three pounds of methamphetamine and a loaded firearm. Francisco admitted in his plea agreement that he had been regularly delivering methamphetamine to drug dealers in Floyd County. During the sentencing hearing, the Court found that Francisco was responsible for the introduction of between 15 and 45 kilograms of methamphetamine into Floyd County, between November 2019 and February 2020. Before this latest conviction, Francisco had twice been convicted of state drug trafficking charges, resulting his designation as a “career offender,” for the purposes of the federal sentencing guidelines.
Under federal law, Francisco must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence and will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for five years, following his release.
“The defendant was responsible for trafficking an enormous amount of dangerous, illegal drugs,” said Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky. “We are committed to reducing the availability of these dangerous drugs, and the violence that often accompanies armed methamphetamine trafficking. This case reinforces a simple point: dealing meth with a gun invites a long stay in federal prison.”
U.S. Attorney Duncan; Shawn Morrow, Special Agent in Charge of the ATF Louisville Field Division; and John Hunt, Floyd County Sheriff, jointly announced the sentence.
The investigation was conducted by ATF and the Floyd County Sheriff’s Office. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew H. Trimble.