DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
District of Idaho

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Wendy J. Olson
, United States Attorney
Contact: Becky Early

Two Rupert Methamphetamine Traffickers Sentenced to Prison

POCATELLO – Lloyd Elmo Gale, 53, and Linda Rae Westmoreland, 51, both of Rupert, Idaho, were sentenced to federal prison today for trafficking methamphetamine, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Gale was sentenced to serve 87 months imprisonment, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Gale to forfeit cash proceeds in the amount of $100,000. Gale pleaded guilty on May 28, 2014, to one count of unlawful possession of a firearm and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Judge Winmill sentenced Westmoreland to serve 36 months in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release. Westmoreland pleaded guilty on April 23, 2014, to one count of distributing methamphetamine.

Gale was found to have distributed just under 100 grams of pure methamphetamine, while Westmoreland distributed approximately 74 grams of pure methamphetamine. Gale, a convicted felon, also sold two stolen firearms to a confidential informant. A third co-defendant, Jose Rosario Juarez, has a scheduled change of plea hearing on August 27, 2014.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Minidoka County Sheriff’s Office, and the Idaho State Police.

###

Seattle Field Division