A Billings woman has pleaded guilty to charges of possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute, according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme.
Raven Michelle Volkomener, 43, entered her plea before Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris. She faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison, up to life imprisonment, a $10 million fine, and at least five years of supervised release. Sentencing is scheduled for December 17, 2025. Volkomener remains in custody pending further proceedings.
Court documents indicate that on May 4, 2024, law enforcement received reports about a vehicle driving erratically toward Billings on Highway 87. Montana Highway Patrol located the vehicle about five miles from Billings and conducted a traffic stop after observing a violation.
The driver was identified as Volkomener, who had an outstanding felony arrest warrant and was taken into custody. A search warrant was executed on her vehicle the same day. Officers found four packages containing suspected methamphetamine in a backpack in the back seat. Laboratory analysis later confirmed that the packages contained over 1,700 grams of pure methamphetamine.
Authorities also obtained a search warrant for Volkomener’s cell phone. The device contained text messages exchanged between February 2023 and May 4, 2024, between Volkomener and a co-defendant discussing plans for Volkomener to travel to Great Falls in May 2024 to collect methamphetamine.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeff Starnes and Zeno Baucus are prosecuting the case. The investigation involved the Montana Highway Patrol, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Montana Department of Criminal Investigations.
"This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN)."
