Louisiana Man Sentenced to 12+ Years for Possession of Methamphetamine After Agents Intercepted a Package Containing Drugs

Lafayette, Louisiana – United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown announced that Irvin J. Butler, 41, of St. Martinville, Louisiana, was sentenced on September 1, 2022. United States District Judge Robert R. Summerhays sentenced him to 151 months (12 years, 7 months) in prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, on drug trafficking charges. Butler pleaded guilty on May 20, 2022, to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

On March 26, 2019, US Postal Inspection Service agents intercepted a suspicious item addressed from Arizona to an address in Lafayette, Louisiana. Agents used a canine trained to detect narcotics, which alerted them to the seized package. A search warrant was acquired, and the package was delivered to the residence at the location given by the sender later that day. A female appeared and took custody of the package once it was delivered. The search warrant was executed, and agents confirmed that the package contained about 1,858 grams of methamphetamine.

Agents discovered that Butler had made two wire transfers to an individual in Arizona and had been tracking the package via the internet after it had been mailed in Arizona. The female who received the item revealed to authorities that she had been seeing Butler and that he had parcels delivered to her home. Butler also texted the girlfriend to let her know that the package will be delivered to her home that day. The seized substance was taken to the Acadiana Criminalistics Laboratory for testing, and the results proved that it was methamphetamine.

The US Postal Inspection Service investigated the case, which was prosecuted by Assistant US Attorney Craig R. Bordelon.