United States Drug Enforcement Administration

FRESNO, Calif. - Ramany Puthavongsa, 48, of Fresno, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Lawrence J. O’Neill to three years and 10 months in prison for growing marijuana in Merced County, Acting Special Agent in Charge Bruce C. Balzano and United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.

According to court documents, on September 27, 2012, law enforcement found Puthavongsa at a large marijuana cultivation site on rural land in Merced County. Puthavongsa had been found the year before at a different large marijuana cultivation site on rural land in Fresno County.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Merced Multi-Agency Narcotics Task (MMNTF). Assistant United States Attorney Kevin P. Rooney prosecuted the case.