Two California brothers were sentenced to long prison terms for their roles in a drug trafficking operation that brought meth and fentanyl into Butte and Helena, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Montana announced today.
Martin Topete, 33, of Mira Loma, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
His younger brother, Johnathan Topete, 28, also of Mira Loma, was sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by five years of supervised release.
According to court records, between June 2022 and January 2023, the Topete brothers and six co-defendants conspired to traffic methamphetamine and fentanyl in Montana.
The scheme came to light in June 2022 when the Utah Highway Patrol stopped an individual transporting 3.5 pounds of meth and 6,000 fentanyl pills, according to the department.
These drugs were intended for distribution in Butte by co-defendant Juan Felipe Vidrio Fuentes, of Anaheim, California, who was staying at a residence in Whitehall, Montana, the department stated.