Possession of Methamphetamine Leads to Federal Prison Sentence of 22+ Years for Ethel Man

LAFAYETTE, La. – Eric Martin, 36, of Ethel, Louisiana, was sentenced today for possession of methamphetamine announced United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown. United States District Judge Robert R. Summerhays sentenced Martin to 274 months (22 years, 10 months) in prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release.

Martin was charged in an indictment in January 2023 with one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. According to evidence presented to the court, on July 13, 2022, members of the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle for speeding and the driver and lone occupant was identified as Martin. During the traffic stop, law enforcement officers observed the odor of marijuana emitting from inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle. After being advised of his Miranda rights, Martin was questioned by officers. Martin admitted that marijuana could be located inside a blue backpack located on the front passenger seat of the vehicle.

A search of the vehicle was conducted, and officers located approximately 26 grams of marijuana on the front passenger seat. In addition, approximately 18 kilograms of suspected methamphetamine was found on the back seat of the vehicle, within the reach of Martin. A presumptive test of the suspected methamphetamine returned a positive result for the presence of methamphetamine. The suspected methamphetamine was sent to the DEA laboratory for testing and had a result indicating the substance had a net weight of 16.96 kilograms of methamphetamine.

Martin has a criminal history including convictions for negligent homicide and accessory after the fact to aggravated second degree battery.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys LaDonte A. Murphy and Craig R. Bordelon.

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