Department of Justice
For Immediate Release
Drug Dealer from Carlsbad Sentenced to Prison for Federal Methamphetamine Trafficking Conviction
ALBUQUERQUE – Jason R. Cunningham, 38, of Carlsbad, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Las Cruces, N.M., to 87 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his methamphetamine trafficking conviction.
Cunningham was arrested on Oct. 4, 2017, on an indictment charging him with distributing methamphetamine on Sept. 27, 2016, in Eddy County, N.M. Cunningham entered a guilty plea to the indictment on Dec. 7, 2017, without the benefit of a plea agreement.
According to a court filing, Cunningham was a well-known narcotics trafficker in the Carlsbad area and a self-admitted street level dealer. He reportedly played a vital role in furthering drug trafficking operations in Carlsbad by directing others in selling drugs after obtaining large quantities of methamphetamine, which he broke down into smaller amounts for further distribution.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Pecos Valley Drug Task Force and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clara N. Cobos and Renee L. Camacho.
The Pecos Valley Drug Task Force is comprised of officers from the Eddy County Sheriff’s Office, Carlsbad Police Department and Artesia Police Department and is part of the HIDTA Region VI Drug Task Force. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program was created by Congress with the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988. HIDTA is a program of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) which provides assistance to federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug-trafficking regions of the United States and seeks to reduce drug trafficking and production by facilitating coordinated law enforcement activities and information sharing.
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