Michael Lee Reed was sentenced yesterday for leading a major drug ring in Longmont in 2019.
Investigators identified 50 individuals involved with the drug ring and arrested 20 in 2019, among them was Reed.
Accompanying the arrest, police seized 1,472 counterfeit 30-milligram oxycodone hydrochloride pills (fentanyl), 3 pounds of methamphetamine, 1.64 pounds of ephedrine, 288 Schedule II synthetic opioid pills, 18.7 grams of cocaine, 6.7 grams of heroin and 10 benzodiazepine pills.
Among the drugs, police also discovered numerous rifles, handguns, and a shotgun, a news release at the time stated.
In November 2020, Reed entered a plea deal and pleaded guilty to a violation of the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act, distribution of a controlled substance and money laundering, Boulder County District Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Shannon Carbone told the Times-Call in 2020.
Reed was sentenced to 28 years in the Department of Corrections, followed by parole, for his top charge of violating the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act – pattern of racketeering, Distribution of a Controlled Substance (DF2) and was sentenced to 16 years in the Department of Correction concurrent followed by parole, and Money Laundering and was sentenced to 16 years in the Department of Corrections followed by parole, according to a news release issued by the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office yesterday.
In total, Reed sold over 1,400 pills containing Fentanyl.
“The prosecution recommended a lengthy prison sentence due to the defendant’s key role in this criminal organization, the massive introduction of controlled substances into this community, and his repeated returns to the distribution of controlled substances,” states the news release.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Erica Baasten explained to the Court, “It is clear that he took a lead role in the organization, he repeated and increased his role within the drug distribution community, and he imported and distributed massive quantities of deadly narcotics.”
District Attorney Michael Dougherty stated, “This drug operation took a terrible toll on our community and he preyed upon individuals in the throes of drug addiction. This man pushed a tremendous amount of drugs into this community for his own profit. It is particularly disturbing that he knowingly sold large quantities of counterfeit pills containing fentanyl, which can be deadly. I appreciate the tireless efforts of the investigators and Senior Deputy District Attorney Erica Baasten in bringing this drug ring to justice.”
