TACOMA — A Sequim man has been sentenced in federal court to five years, eight months in prison for selling methamphetamine, according to the Olympic Peninsula Narcotics Enforcement Team.
Kenneth Francis Simmons, 57, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 70 months in prison on Monday, according to an OPNET press release, which described him as a “prolific methamphetamine dealer in the Sequim area.”
He had pleaded guilty on Sept. 1 to being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and distribution of methamphetamine, the release said.
On four occasions in 2019, an informant working with detectives purchased methamphetamine from Simmons, the release said, adding that two of the purchases were on tribal lands — Lower Elwha Kallam and Jamestown S’Klallam.
Detectives collaborated with the FBI, which joined the investigation into Simmons’ dealings on reservation lands, the release said.
On Aug. 16, 2019, Clallam County Sheriff’s Deputy Don Kitchen stopped Simmons for investigation of speeding, the release said. Simmons’ car was impounded, and authorities found methamphetamine packaged for resale and a firearm. Due to prior felony convictions, Simmons was prohibited from possessing firearms.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington state.
OPNET is a multi-agency team dedicated to the enforcement of narcotics laws in Clallam and Jefferson counties. Investigators are from the Clallam and Jefferson county sheriff’s offices; the Port Angeles, Sequim and Port Townsend police departments; the U.S. Border Patrol and Homeland Security Investigations.