St. Louis Man Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Drug, Gun Crimes

ST. LOUIS – U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark on Tuesday sentenced a St. Louis man convicted of gun and drug crimes to 30 years in prison.

Christopher Glen Rhodes, 47, was found guilty at trial in June of one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, two counts of distribution of a controlled substance, one count of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Evidence and testimony at trial showed that Rhodes was the supplier of methamphetamine that his co-defendant, Demetrius A. Ransom, sold to a confidential source working with the Drug Enforcement Administration. In late 2022, Ransom twice sold about a pound of meth to the confidential source, who told investigators that he’d previously purchased both meth and fentanyl from Ransom. He tried to sell a third pound but didn’t have enough, and offered to make up the difference in fentanyl, a sentencing memorandum says. That memo says Rhodes and Ransom have been selling drugs together for nearly 25 years.

After the drug sales by Ransom, investigators planned a court-approved search of Rhodes’ home in the 4900 block of West Florissant Avenue. On Dec. 19, 2022, they saw Rhodes leaving. They stopped Rhodes’ car, but when he was asked to get out of the car, he sped away. Investigators found a total of 2.7 kilograms of meth, 3.8 kilos of fentanyl, 981.8 grams of cocaine and 129.7 grams of cocaine base in his home, evidence and testimony showed. They also found $21,000 in cash, a loaded 9mm Ruger handgun and drug paraphernalia.

Rhodes is a felon and is thus barred from possessing a firearm. Rhodes’ 294-month prison sentence for possession with the intent to distribute cocaine base was commuted in 2016 to expire in 2018. He then sought early termination of his supervised release, saying he was older and wiser and wanted to advance at his job.

Ransom, 46, of St. Louis County, was sentenced Wednesday to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.

The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Torrie J. Schneider and Don Boyce prosecuted the case.