United States Drug Enforcement Administration

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Columbia, Mo., man pleaded guilty in federal court today to possessing more than five kilograms of methamphetamine that he received in the mail while he was on bond on an earlier federal indictment that also charged him with methamphetamine trafficking.

David Lee Williams, 43, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Willie J. Epps Jr. to one count of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.

In January 2022, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service intercepted two packages that each contained a total of approximately 2.7 kilograms of methamphetamine. Each of the packages was addressed to a different residence utilized by Williams. On Jan. 19, 2022, Postal Inspection agents conducted a controlled delivery at one of the residences and executed search warrants at both residences.

At the time of this offense, Williams was on bond in a separate and unrelated federal indictment; his bond in that case was revoked following his arrest on Jan. 19, 2022. Williams then pleaded guilty in that separate case to possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, and was sentenced on March 3, 2022, to 17 years and six months in federal prison without parole.

Under federal statutes, Williams is subject in this case to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. 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 U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Columbia, Mo., Police Department, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.