FORT SMITH -- A Fort Smith man was sentenced in federal court Thursday to 171/2 years in prison after pleading guilty in November to possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, court records showed.
William Joseph Alexander, 33, was arrested with his wife, Rosa Sharon, on July 13 as they returned to Fort Smith from Oklahoma City with nearly 7 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in an electronics box in the back seat, according to the records.
Court records showed that Alexander admitted to dealing large quantities of drugs and said his wife helped him by interpreting Spanish for him in phone calls to his drug source, weighing out drugs and counting money.
A magistrate noted after their arrest last year that a probation report stated Alexander had drug possession convictions in California in 2002, 2004, 2005 and 2007.
Sharon pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge the day after her husband, according to court records. She is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court Monday.
Another man charged with Alexander and Sharon, Randal Jernigan, pleaded guilty Sept. 30 to distribution of methamphetamine and was sentenced Feb. 3 to seven years in prison, court records showed.
NW News on 03/27/2015