Hot Springs Man Sentenced to 18 Years in Federal Prison for Drug and Firearms Possession

DOJ Press

HOT SPRINGS – A Hot Springs man was sentenced today to 216 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release on one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Possession of a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Offense. The Honorable Chief Judge Susan O. Hickey presided over the sentencing hearing in the U.S. District Court in Hot Springs.

According to court documents, on February 26, 2019, the Hot Springs Police Department (HSPD) received a complaint concerning a vehicle attempting to ram another vehicle. A HSPD Officer responded to the area and was able to observe the vehicle and the altercation. A traffic stop was initiated on the vehicle at that time.

The driver of the vehicle was identified as Ralph Andrew Stevens, age 37. Stevens was questioned and ultimately determined to be on parole through the state of Arkansas.  Stevens was searched and officers located a clear drug pipe with white residue in his jacket pocket. Stevens was placed in custody at this time.

A search of Stevens vehicle resulted in officers locating two (2) loaded firearms, approximately 163 grams of suspected marijuana, approximately 101.8 grams of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.  Officers also located and seized $3,916.00 in United States currency.


The suspected methamphetamine was tested by the Drug Enforcement Administration laboratory and confirmed to be not less than 93.56 grams of pure methamphetamine.


U.S. Attorney David Clay Fowlkes of the Western District of Arkansas made the announcement.

The Hot Springs Police Department investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan Achorn prosecuted the case.

This case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), 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. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. 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.

This effort is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

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