BILLINGS - A jury on Wednesday convicted Billings resident Charles Eugene Venditti of methamphetamine trafficking crimes, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme said. The trial began on Monday.
The jury found Venditti, 42, guilty of all five counts in an indictment, including conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute meth, possession with intent to distribute meth and three counts of distribution.
Venditti faces a minimum mandatory 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and five years of supervised release.
Chief U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen set sentencing for Jan. 14, 2020. Venditti is detained.
“Mr. Venditti’s conviction sends the message that those who sell meth will be held responsible for pushing this poison in the community. I want to commend the Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force and the prosecution team for their work on this case," U.S. Attorney Alme said.
Prosecutors presented evidence at trial that law enforcement received information in May 2018 that Venditti was distributing meth. Law enforcement worked with a confidential informant to make three monitored meth buys from Venditti. Two of the buys occurred at Venditti’s tattoo business at 145 Grand Ave., and one occurred in Venditti’s vehicle. Each purchase was for an ounce of meth for $800.
Law enforcement served search warrants in June 2018 on Venditti’s residence and tattoo business and on another person’s residence. The search found drug paraphernalia and a small amount of meth at Venditti’s residence.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Tom Godfrey and Colin Rubich prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Eastern Montana High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force.
The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
