Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Roosevelt County farmer pleads guilty to federal drug charges

In a plea agreement, Roosevelt County farmer William “Billy Joe” Watson has pleaded guilty to transporting anhydrous ammonia for methamphetamine manufacture across state lines. Under federal charges, Watson was accused of buying anhydrous ammonia in Texas and in New Mexico and giving it to federal agents he believed were members of the Aryan Brotherhood criminal organization for use in methamphetamine manufacture. Earlier this year, he was acquitted of state charges of hiring Aryan Brotherhood member Donald Taylor to kill local rancher Jimmie Bo Chunn and providing the anhydrous ammonia as payment. Watson plead guilty to interstate travel in aid of a racketeering enterprise Monday in federal court in Albuquerque, according to court documents. In exchange, the U.S. Attorney’s Office dropped charges of conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine and possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking, said office spokesman Norman Cairns. Watson was sentenced to five years in prison, three years of supervised probation after his release, a $25,000 fine and a $100 special penalty assessment, according to court documents...more

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