A Springfield, Mo., man and a Willard, Mo., woman pleaded guilty in federal court today to their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Greene County, Mo., and in a money-laundering conspiracy.
Patrick R. Brigaudin, 55, of Springfield, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool to the charges contained in a Sept. 28, 2016, federal indictment.
Gayla Rochelle Phillips, 42, of Willard, pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to the same charges.
Brigaudin and Phillips admitted they participated in the methamphetamine conspiracy from October 2013 to Feb. 29, 2016. In total, the amount of pure methamphetamine involved in the conspiracy weighed in excess of 4.5 kilograms.
In March 2015, a shipment of approximately 15 pounds of pure methamphetamine was interdicted by law enforcement officers. Three persons were arrested following a controlled delivery of the methamphetamine to a Springfield hotel. Brigaudin admitted that he attempted to possess some or all of the methamphetamine, which he intended to distribute to others. Brigaudin also admitted to distributing methamphetamine on several occasions in 2015 and 2016.
On Feb. 29, 2016, two individuals transported approximately 12 pounds of methamphetamine to Brigaudin’s residence. While they were removing the methamphetamine from a vehicle, they and Brigaudin were arrested.
Phillips admitted that she obtained methamphetamine from Brigaudin on Feb. 19, 2016, which she then distributed to another person.
Brigaudin and Phillips also admitted they purchased a 2006 Lincoln Mark LT pickup truck by paying an automobile dealer $7,200 in cash and an $8,500 check drawn on Phillips’s bank account. They conducted this financial transaction with drug-trafficking proceeds in order to conceal the nature and source of the funds and to avoid a transaction reporting requirement.
Under federal statutes, Brigaudin is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in prison without parole. Phillips is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy A. Garrison. It was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Springfield, Mo., Police Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Ozark, Mo., Police Department, the Greene County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, COMET (the Combined Ozarks Multijurisdictional Enforcement Team) and the South Central Drug Task Force.
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