Three men sentenced to federal prison for roles in drug trafficking conspiracy
Drugs found hidden inside “teddy bear” en route to Ketchikan, Alaska
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder announced that three men have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a drug trafficking conspiracy to import and distribute methamphetamine in Ketchikan, Alaska.
Neptali Yadao Dadia, 41, of Ketchikan, was sentenced today by Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Burgess, to serve 10 years in prison, followed by eight years of supervised release, after previously pleading guilty to methamphetamine conspiracy. At the time of the offense, Dadia was on supervised release from a previous federal drug conviction.
Dadia’s co-conspirators were each sentenced in September 2018 for their roles in the conspiracy, after previously pleading guilty to methamphetamine conspiracy. Matthew Steven Speers, 28, of Ketchikan, was sentenced to serve five years in prison, followed by four years of supervised release. Jaypee Tolsa Lorenzo, 33, of Ketchikan, was sentenced to serve 15 months in prison, followed by four years of supervised release.
According to court documents, Dadia coordinated and directed the distribution of drugs, as well as, collection of drug proceeds from co-conspirators in Ketchikan, and for payment of drugs obtained from Nevada. A federal investigation was launched after a suspicious package was identified on Aug. 18, 2017, that originated from “Ivy Si” in Las Vegas, Nevada, to be delivered to Speers in Ketchikan, Alaska. A search warrant was obtained and executed on the package, and located inside was a teddy bear containing 53.92 grams of methamphetamine.
The investigation revealed that Dadia contacted a co-conspirator outside of the United States, and arranged for the purchase and shipment of two ounces of methamphetamine to Nevada, and then to Speers in Alaska. Dadia coordinated with Speers to receive the drug packages in Ketchikan, where Speers would take half of the drugs for distribution before giving the remaining half to Lorenzo. Lorenzo would then deliver the remaining drugs, along with Speers’ drug proceeds, directly to Dadia for further distribution. The investigation further revealed that Dadia had previously arranged a two-ounce shipment of methamphetamine, utilizing the same methods and co-conspirators in July 2017.
The Alaska State Troopers (AST) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) conducted the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of this case. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack S. Schmidt.
