Fargo Man Sentenced to Life Imprisonment for Drug Trafficking and Aiding and Abetting a Robbery in Furtherance of the Drug Trafficking

FARGO - U.S. Attorney Timothy Q. Purdon announced that on Jan. 8, 2013, Fred Miles Thompson of Fargo, N.D., was sentenced before U.S. District Judge Ralph R. Erickson on charges of drug trafficking and aiding and abetting a robbery in furtherance of the drug trafficking.

Judge Erickson sentenced Thompson to 40 years’ imprisonment on the drug conspiracy charge and to life imprisonment on the aiding and abetting a robbery charge in furtherance of drug trafficking. The life sentence is to run consecutive to the 40 year sentence.

Thompson, 55, pleaded guilty on Oct. 4, 2012, to distributing methamphetamine in the Fargo area and admitted to distributing more than 50 grams but less than 200 grams of a mixture containing methamphetamine during the course of the conspiracy.

In furtherance of the drug trafficking conspiracy, Thompson admitted to aiding and abetting the use of a firearm by requesting Steve Gibson, Mason Peet and Charles Butcher to commit the robbery of the Stop-N-Go at 23rd Street South in Fargo on Oct. 26, 2011.

The investigation revealed that Gibson, Peet and Butcher used a .22 caliber rifle during the robbery.

The incidents occurred from January through December of 2011 in the District of North Dakota.

Steve Gibson pleaded guilty in Cass County District Court to criminal conspiracy and was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment. Mason Peet pleaded guilty in Cass County District Court to robbery and terrorizing and was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment. Charles Butcher was convicted of criminal conspiracy by a jury on June 20, 2012, in Cass County District Court and was sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, North Dakota Bureau of Criminal Investigation, Cass County Drug Task Force, and the Fargo Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chris Myers and Tara Iversen prosecuted the case.