California man admits dealing meth in Havre, Great Falls, Rocky Boy's Indian Reservation

From The Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Montana

A California man admitted today to dealing methamphetamine in Havre, Great Falls and the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said.

Roel Centeno of Oxnard, Calilfornia, 44, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Great Falls to possession with intent to distribute meth.

He faces a maximum 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine and three years of supervised release. He was detained.

U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided and set sentencing for Oct. 16, 2019.

The prosecution said in court documents that law enforcement agents learned Centeno was arranging the shipment of numerous packages of meth to recipients in Havre, Great Falls and the Rocky Boy’s Indian Reservation from about June 2017 to March 2018. The recipients broke down the meth packages for local redistribution. Agents interviewed numerous people who received meth from Centeno.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Betley is prosecuting the case, which was investigated by the Great Falls Police Department and Homeland Security Investigations.

The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and re-entry programs for lasting reductions in crime.