GREAT FALLS — Katrina Marie Bennett, who admitted to dealing methamphetamine and heroin from a gas station and casino, was sentenced in federal court in Great Falls on Wednesday.
Bennett, 36 years old, pleaded guilty on March 17 to possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.
Court documents alleged that in the summer of 2019, law enforcement officers began receiving information that Bennett was trafficking meth and heroin in Great Falls. Investigators learned that Bennett was dealing drugs from a gas station and used the casino as her office to conduct drug deals.
Officers made a series of undercover meth buys from Bennett and knew that she frequently traveled to Butte to engage in drug-related activities.
In May 2020, officers stopped Bennett’s car as she left Butte and searched it pursuant to a warrant.
Bennett told officers she had returned from California the day before with a pound of meth, had already sold about seven ounces of meth in Butte, and that another person had taken the other half-pound to Great Falls. Agents found meth and heroin during the search of the car.
Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Morris presided, and sentenced Bennett to 52 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release, according to a news release from Acting U.S. Attorney Leif Johnson.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Betley prosecuted the case, which was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Great Falls Police Department, and Russell Country Drug Task Force.
