Two Men Indicted for Trafficking Methamphetamine Bound for Utqiaġvik (Formerly Barrow)

Anchorage, Alaska – U.S. Attorney Karen L. Loeffler announced today that two Anchorage men were indicted by a federal grand jury in Anchorage for trafficking in methamphetamine bound for Utqiaġvik, Alaska (formerly Barrow, Alaska).

The two defendants named in the indictment are Maurice Abad Malabed, aka “Moe,” 47, and David Patrick Christensen, 29, both of Anchorage.  According to the indictment, Malabed and Christensen conspired and attempted to distribute and to possess with the intent to distribute 50 grams and more of a mixture or substance containing a detectible amount of methamphetamine. 

According to the criminal complaint filed in federal court last week, on Dec. 7, 2016, law enforcement intercepted a parcel addressed to Christensen, which contained approximately four ounces of methamphetamine, and thereafter effected a controlled delivery of the package.  Malabed and Christensen were both arrested on Dec. 7, 2016, when they took possession of the parcel outside Christensen’s Anchorage residence.  The underlying investigation revealed that, among other things, between approximately Nov. 29 and Dec. 7, 2016, Malabed had arranged for the shipment of roughly 135 grams of methamphetamine from California to Anchorage, with Christensen’s assistance, and that the methamphetamine was ultimately bound for Utqiaġvik.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrea Hattan, who presented the case to the grand jury, indicated that the law provides for a minimum of five years and a maximum total sentence of 40 years in prison, a fine of $5,000,000, or both, for each of the two charged offenses.  Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendants. 

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Alaska State Troopers Statewide Drug Enforcement Unit (AST SDEU), and the North Slope Bureau Police Department (NSBPD) jointly conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case. 

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.