DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
Western District of Missouri

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, April 19, 2017
Tom Larson, Acting
, United States Attorney
Contact: Don Leford, Public Affairs

Springfield Man Sentenced to 16 Years for Meth Conspiracy

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tom Larson, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that a Springfield, Mo., man has been sentenced in federal court for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

John P. Morris, 44, of Springfield, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool on Tuesday, April 18, 2017, to 16 years and eight months in federal prison without parole.

On June 29, 2016, Morris pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Greene County, Mo., from Jan. 9, 2013, to Jan. 15, 2015.

According to court documents, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Morris’s residence on Jan. 9, 2013. They found Morris in the detached garage. During a search of the garage, officers found a plastic sandwich bag that contained 23.96 grams of methamphetamine. Inside a yellow tool box, officers found $2,851. Officers also found a loaded Remington 12-gauge pistol grip shotgun in the bedroom of the house and three baggies that contained a total of 4.45 grams of methamphetamine. Officers found several empty baggies and a digital scale on top of a stool in the bedroom.

On Jan. 15, 2015, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Morris’s residence and detained Morris inside a shed on the property. Inside the shed, officers found 275.6 grams of pure methamphetamine in an ammunition case next to the bed. Officers also seized $8,664 from Morris plus $125 that was found underneath the ammunition case. Officers also found a digital scale covered in residue on a wooden stool by the bed.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Nhan D. Nguyen. It was investigated by the Springfield, Mo., Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

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This news release, as well as additional information about the office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, is available on-line at

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