GREAT FALLS — A Billings man who admitted trafficking methamphetamine and fentanyl pills on the Fort Peck Indian Reservation after he tried to flee law enforcement on a dirt bike and discarded a backpack containing drugs and a loaded handgun was sentenced today to seven years and four months in prison to be followed by four years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
Dominique Kendall Brown, 29, pleaded guilty in July to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.
In court documents, the government alleged that on Aug. 6, 2021, Fort Peck Law Enforcement officers tried to stop Brown for a traffic infraction on a dirt bike near Wolf Point. Brown sped away, initiating a 10-minute pursuit in which he drove at high speeds on a walking path near pedestrians. During the pursuit, Brown discarded a backpack with a loaded hand gun inside. Brown eventually crashed and his dirt bike started a fire, which law enforcement extinguished. The backpack also contained $1,131 cash, a scale, 109 grams of meth and 146 fentanyl pills.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ethan R. Plaut prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the FBI, Montana Highway Patrol, Fort Peck Police Department and Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office.
This case is 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 gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
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