MADISON, WIS. – Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Carl Rabe, 44, Baraboo, Wisconsin was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 96 months in prison for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Rabe pleaded guilty to this charge on April 26, 2022.
During the course of a long-term, multi-agency investigation, law enforcement officers identified several people, including Rabe, who distributed significant amounts of methamphetamine in western Wisconsin. Investigators also learned that Rabe partnered with traffickers who purchased methamphetamine from sources-of-supply in other states.
On October 20, 2021, an investigator from the Richland-Iowa-Grant Drug Task Force watched Rabe meet with the driver of a pickup truck in a retail parking lot in Lancaster, Wisconsin. The investigator knew Rabe had an outstanding warrant and was on probation for prior drug charges.
While Rabe stood next to the pickup, the investigator and a canine officer from the Lancaster Police Department arrested Rabe on the outstanding warrant. Investigators then interviewed the driver of the pickup who admitted that he planned to purchase $50 worth of methamphetamine from Rabe.
Investigators searched Rabe’s car after the Lancaster Police Department’s drug detection dog alerted to the presence of narcotics in the vehicle. A scale, packaging material, and 425 grams of methamphetamine were found in the car.
At the sentencing hearing, Judge Conley described Rabe as someone who embraced the drug trafficking lifestyle. Judge Conley noted that, in addition to the charged conduct, Rabe jumped into a major drug trafficking network when he partnered with Christopher Fernette and Dillan Boydston to obtain three pounds of methamphetamine from a source-of-supply in Minnesota.
On June 29, 2022, Judge Conley sentenced Christopher Fernette to 120 months’ imprisonment for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver. Dillan Boydston pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and is scheduled to be sentenced on November 3, 2022.
The charge against Rabe was the result of an investigation conducted by Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, Prairie du Chien Police Department, Richland-Iowa-Grant Drug Task Force, Lancaster Police Department, Dakota County (Minnesota) Drug Task Force, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Chadwick M. Elgersma prosecuted this case.