Columbia Man Sentenced for Meth Trafficking

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – A Columbia, Missouri, man was sentenced in federal court today for possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.

Travis Jay Hall, 39, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Bough to 10 years in federal prison without parole.

Hall, who pleaded guilty on June 5, 2019, was arrested in the parking lot of the Suburban Extended Stay Hotel on April 17, 2019. Hall was in possession of 467 grams of methamphetamine as well as drug paraphernalia. Law enforcement officers searched his hotel room and found 16 grams of methamphetamine, prescription pills, and additional drug paraphernalia.

According to court records, Hall told officers he had been selling methamphetamine since his release from prison in August 2018. Hall also told officers that over the previous month he had purchased one pound of methamphetamine per week for $5,000 in Kansas City, Mo., and personally redistributed that methamphetamine in the Columbia area.

Hall has nine prior felony convictions for possession of a controlled substance, as well as prior felony convictions for possession of drug paraphernalia with intent to deliver or sell, possession of a firearm while an unlawful user of a controlled substance, and endangering the welfare of a child. Hall was on probation at the time of his arrest in this case.

This case was prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron M. Jolly. It was investigated by the Columbia, Mo., Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration.