Butler County man gets prison for plan to sell $30K worth of meth

CAPE GIRARDEAU — A rural Butler County man was sentenced Tuesday afternoon to nearly 12 years in federal prison for possessing an estimated $30,000 worth of methamphetamine with intentions of distributing the drug.

Byron Deshawn Norris was sentenced to 140 months on the felony of possession of 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine with intent to distribute and 120 months on the felony of felon in possession of a firearm, according to Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Willis.

U.S. District Judge John Ross ordered Norris’ sentences to be served concurrently, Willis said.

Upon Norris’ release from prison, Willis said, he will be placed on a five-year period of supervised release.

The agreed-upon facts of the case say on Oct. 30, the Butler County Sheriff’s Department received a call saying a delivery driver had been threatened by a man with a gun at a residence on County Road 4701.

Deputies reportedly responded to the residence, where they met with Norris.

“Upon Norris opening the door, the officers could detect a strong odor of marijuana coming from inside the house,” the plea agreement signed by Norris says.

Norris was arrested on a warrant, and the deputies reportedly conducted a “protective sweep and frisked the occupants,” locating $5,290 in a woman’s purse.

A search warrant subsequently was obtained and executed.

Deputies found 1.3 kilograms of methamphetamine and a .22-caliber Phoenix pistol in the kitchen of the home, the plea agreement says.

“Norris indicated that he had confronted the delivery driver about someone telling his landlord that he was smoking marijuana, but claimed that he did not threaten to kill the driver,” the plea agreement further says.

Norris further indicated he had bought the methamphetamine a couple of days earlier, and 1 pound was purchased for someone else, but “he was going to sell the second pound.”

At that time, Butler County authorities estimated the street value of the methamphetamine to be about $30,000.

The substance later was tested at a crime lab and found to be 1,337 grams of a mixture or substance containing methamphetamine.

Norris reported the money was his, and he had given it to the woman to hold when officers arrived.

“Norris claimed that he had the gun because ‘it was rough on the streets,’” the plea agreement said.

At the time of Norris’ arrest, he was a convicted felon, having been convicted of the felony of possession of a controlled substance in Dunklin County in November 2016 and sentenced to five years in the Missouri Department of Corrections.

With his plea, Willis said, Norris was ordered to forfeit $5,290 in cash and a Phoenix Arms .22-caliber semiautomatic pistol.