Santa Rosa man gets 18 years prison for possessing 73 pounds of methamphetamine
SANTA ROSA – A North Bay man who was found with more than 70 pounds of methamphetamine during a drug bust last year was sentenced to state prison, prosecutors said Friday.
According to the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office, a judge sentenced 29-year-old Jose Vegasanchez of Santa Rosa to 18 years.
Prosecutors said Vegasanchez had entered into a plea deal with the DA's office, in which he pleaded no contest to being a felon in possession of a firearm and transporting methamphetamine. He also admitted to an enhancement that he was in possession of more than 20 kilograms of the drug.
Last October, an investigation by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office led to a search of Vegasanchez's home in Santa Rosa. Deputies found 73 pounds of methamphetamine separated out into one-pound bags, along with a Glock 9mm semiautomatic handgun.
Authorities said the methamphetamine is equivalent to at least 165,000 individual doses and had a street value of about $150,000.
Prosecutors said while Vegasanchez received an 18 year prison sentence, he has been classified as a nonviolent offender and would be eligible for parole in three years due to Proposition 57, which was approved by voters in 2016.