MISSOULA - A Kalispell man convicted of drug trafficking charges was sentenced to prison on Thursday, July 27, 2023.
Andrew Joseph Shields — who was found guilty of trafficking methamphetamine and fentanyl — was sentenced to 11 years and three months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.
The 40-year-old Shields pleaded guilty in March to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.
Prosecutors alleged in court documents that in June 2022 in Lake County, Montana Highway Patrol troopers made a traffic stop of a vehicle Shields was driving.
During the stop, the trooper saw a firearm in the vehicle. In a later search of the vehicle, law enforcement found 478 grams, or a little more than one pound, of meth, fentanyl, additional firearms and more than $8,000 in cash.
U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy presided over the sentencing.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tara J. Elliott prosecuted the case. The Northwest Drug Task Force and Montana Highway Patrol conducted the investigation.
