United States Drug Enforcement Administration

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - James Shroba, Special Agent in Charge of the St. Louis Division Drug Enforcement Administration announced today that Travis Ybarra was convicted in federal court today for his role in conspiracies to distribute methamphetamine in Jackson County, Mo., and to engage in money laundering.

Ybarra, also known as “HoodNutt,” 27, of Kansas City, was found guilty of participating in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine from Jan. 1, 2009, to Dec. 11, 2012. Ybarra was also found guilty of participating in a money-laundering conspiracy that involved proceeds of drug trafficking.

In July 2011, the Jackson County Drug Task Force began an investigation into a drug-trafficking organization distributing methamphetamine in the Kansas City, Mo., area. Ybarra and co-defendant John Martinez, also known as “Whisper,” 33, of Kansas City, Mo., were partners who supplied methamphetamine to mid-level distributers, who then sold the methamphetamine to others.

Martinez was sentenced on Feb. 10, 2015, to 12 years and six months in federal prison without parole, after pleading guilty to the same charges.

Under federal statutes, Ybarra is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $10.5 million. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Independence, Mo., Police Department, the Jackson County Drug Task Force and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce Rhoades and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Caine.