Fairbanks Man Sentenced to 57 Months

Anchorage, Alaska-U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that a man from Fairbanks, Alaska was sentenced in federal court for possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute.

Etienne Devoe, 41, from Fairbanks, Alaska, was sentenced in Anchorage, Alaska, on Monday, July 28, 2014, by Chief United States District Court Judge Ralph R. Beistline.  Devoe received a sentence of 57 months in prison, a fine of $2,240, and three years of supervised release for his conviction of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.

Devoe was convicted by a Fairbanks jury on May 1, 2014.  The evidence established that Devoe was present in a residence in Fairbanks, Alaska, on February 1, 2012, when law enforcement served a federal search warrant on the residence in connection with a separate federal indictment.  During the search of the residence, a duffle bag was found in the room where Devoe had been sleeping.  Inside the duffle bag, investigators found six ounces of powder cocaine and a small amount of crack cocaine.  Also inside the duffle bag police found a pair of men's pants consistent with Devoe's size, and in one of the pants’ pockets law enforcement found a men's wallet that contained Devoe's identification and other documents with Devoe's name on them.  Inside another pocket, law enforcement found $2,240, with the money wrapped in bundles of $1,000 and $240.

Before imposing a sentence, Chief Judge Beistline commented that the community was impacted by the defendant's drug dealing.  Chief Judge Beistline noted that the defendant is the father of eight children with six different mothers and that the defendant's long history of convictions for domestic violence was part of a dysfunctional cycle.  Chief Judge Beistline also commented that the defendant's activities were a danger to the community; in June 2013, the defendant was found inside a house in Fairbanks that had seven shots fired at it during a drive-by shooting.

Chief Judge Beistline ordered the $2,240 fine to be used to pay the defendant's outstanding child support bills.

Devoe has another federal trial scheduled for February 2015, where he is charged in a separate matter as a member of a large scale drug conspiracy.

            Ms. Loeffler commends the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Fairbanks Police Department, and the Alaska State Troopers for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Mr. Devoe.