Drug Trafficker Sentenced to 57 Months in Federal Prison

Hagatña, Guam – SHAWN N. ANDERSON, United States Attorney for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands, announced that defendant Matthew J.V. Salas, age 29, from Agana Heights, Guam, was sentenced to 57 months imprisonment by the District Court of Guam.  Salas was convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute Fifty or More Grams of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(a)(1).  The Court also ordered three years of supervised release and a mandatory $100 special assessment fee.  In addition, defendants convicted of a federal drug offense may no longer qualify for certain federal benefits.

On May 17, 2022, a United States Postal Service package was intercepted by law enforcement.  The package contained 112 grams of methamphetamine with a purity of 99 percent.  Salas claimed the package at the Barrigada Post Office two days later.  Following his arrest, he admitted receiving drug packages mailed to him from Arizona for further distribution in Guam.  He received two other packages, each containing about two ounces of methamphetamine, the previous month.  Salas re-packaged the drugs into 10-gram and 5-gram bags for further distribution. 

“The Postal Inspection Service and Guam law enforcement agencies continue to target drug traffickers who use the mail system in furtherance of illegal activity,” stated United States Attorney Anderson.  “Their frequent seizures of methamphetamine demonstrate that this conduct does not go undetected.  Those associated with this activity will be held accountable.” 

“This sentence is a statement that Postal Inspectors will not allow the U.S. Mail to be used to distribute harmful narcotics in our communities in Guam or anywhere else. I would like to thank the Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency, and the Guam Police Department for their tireless work to keep dangerous substances out of the mail and out of the community,” said U.S. Postal Inspection Service San Francisco Division Inspector in Charge Rafael Nuñez.

This was a multi-agency investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration Los Angeles Field Division – Guam Resident Office, United States Postal Inspection Service, and Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency.  The case was prosecuted by Marivic P. David, Assistant United States Attorney in the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.