Informational: Federal Court arraignments

The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced that the following persons were arraigned or appeared this week before U.S. Magistrate judges on indictments handed down by the Grand Jury or on criminal complaints. The charging documents are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt:

Appearing in Billings before U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Cavan for a preliminary hearing on a criminal complaint on Aug. 16 was:

Rene Montenegro-Virrey, 50, of Bozeman, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. If convicted of the most serious crime, Montenegro-Virrey faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release. Montenegro-Virrey was detained pending further proceedings. The Missouri River Drug Task Force and Montana Highway Patrol conducted the investigation.  PACER case reference. 24-47.

Appearing on Aug. 14 and pleading not guilty was:

Dean Allen Wallowing Bull, 45, of Crow Agency, on charges of sexual abuse and attempted sexual abuse. If convicted of the most serious crime, Wallowing Bull faces life in prison, a $250,000 fine and at least five years of supervised release. Wallowing Bull was detained pending further proceedings. The FBI, Northern Cheyenne Criminal Investigative Services and Bureau of Indian Affairs investigated the case. PACER case reference. 24-110.

Kelly Duane Davis, 42, of Billings, on charges of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and distribution of meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Davis faces a mandatory minimum of five years to 40 years in prison, a $5 million fine and at least four years of supervised release. Davis was detained pending further proceedings. The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted the investigation. PACER case reference. 24-66.

Channon Nicole Freemont, 35, of Lame Deer, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute meth, possession with intent to distribute meth and distribution of meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Freemont faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine and at least three years of supervised release. The FBI conducted the investigation. PACER case reference. 24-95.

Derrick Lee Moore, 39, of Fairview, on charges of possession with intent to distribute meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Moore faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $1 million fine and three years of supervised release. Moore was detained pending further proceedings. The FBI and Billings Police Department conducted the investigation. PACER case reference. 24-59.

Appearing in Missoula before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto and pleading not guilty on Aug. 13 was:

Charles Clifford Hamlin, 60, of Helena, on charges of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and distribution of meth. If convicted of the most serious crime, Hamlin faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release. Hamlin was detained pending further proceedings. The Missouri River Drug Task Force conducted the investigation. PACER case reference. 24-16.

Appearing on Aug. 12 was:

Stevenson Metelus, 35, of Margate, Florida, on charges of attempted coercion of a minor and use of facility in aid of racketeering. If convicted of the most serious crime, Metelus faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years to life in prison, a $250,000 fine and at least five years to life of supervised release. Metelus was released pending further proceedings. The FBI, Missoula Police Department and Missoula County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation. PACER case reference. 24-34.

The progress of cases may be monitored through the U.S. District Court Calendar and the PACER system. To establish a PACER account, which provides electronic access to review documents filed in a case, please visit http://www.pacer.gov/register.html. To access the District Court’s calendar, please visit https://ecf.mtd.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/PublicCalendar.pl.

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