Elmira Man Sentenced to on Gun and Drug Charges

         ROCHESTER, N.Y.– U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Shawn Rickard, 39, of Elmira, N.Y., who was convicted following of conspiracy to manufacture 500 grams or more of methamphetamine and possession of firearms in the furtherance of drug trafficking activities, was sentenced to 97 months in prison, and five years supervised release by U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa.

            Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles E. Moynihan, who is handling the case, stated that Shawn Rickard, together with co-conspirators Chad Speicher and John Barton and others, conspired to manufacture 500 grams or more of a mixture containing methamphetamine in Millport in Schuyler County, N.Y., between 2009 and May, 2011.

            On May 18, 2011, members of the New York State Police, Schuyler County Sheriff’s Office, Schuyler County District Attorney’s Office, Village of Watkins Glen Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration executed a state court-authorized search warrant at John Barton’s residence based on an ongoing investigation by these agencies. In a shed on Barton’s property, law enforcement officers discovered an active methamphetamine laboratory which was in the process of producing methamphetamine, as well as methamphetamine and powder substances which tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine and pseudoephedrine. In the same shed, law enforcement officers also recovered multiple firearms, one of which was a handgun which officers located in Barton’s backpack, along with methamphetamine and over $8,000 in U.S. Currency. Officers also recovered marijuana from the house located on the property as well. 

            John Barton was convicted of similar charges following a jury trial in June 2013 and will be sentenced on September 24, 2013. Chad Speicher was convicted in January 2012 and will be sentenced on September 25, 2013.

            The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of the Schuyler County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of District Attorney Joseph Fazzary, Special Agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Resident Agent in Charge Brian R. Crowell, New York Field Division, the New York State Police Community Narcotics Enforcement Team (CNET), under the direction of  Major Wayne C. Olson, the Schuyler County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff William Yessman, and the Watkins Glen Police Department, under the direction of Chief Thomas R. Struble.