4 men sentenced in Montana for multi-state meth distribution conspiracy

HELENA, Mont. – A federal district judge handed down sentences Thursday ranging from 30 to 150 months in prison to four men for their methamphetamine convictions. The sentences resulted from an investigation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and its law enforcement partners. 

The prison sentences were as follows:

• Ryan Scot Frankforter, 38, of Helena – 30 months and three years’ supervised release;
• Deejay Poynter, 37, of East Helena – 70 months and three years’ supervised release;
• Calvin Sturdivant Craver, 29, of Dallas, Oregon – 120 months and five years’ supervised release;
• Joseph Dean Jayne Jr., 33, of Tucson, Arizona – 150 months and five years’ supervised release.   

All four men were sentenced following an 11-count indictment handed down in August 2015. Frankforter and Poynter were sentenced for distribution of methamphetamine; Craver and Jayne were sentenced for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

In documents filed with the court, Assistant U.S. Attorney Paulette Stewart stated that the government was prepared to show that the four men had been involved, in various capacities, in a months-long conspiracy to transport and distribute methamphetamine across state lines. 

From about December 2014 until May 2015, Jayne and another co-conspirator transported between three and 12 pounds of methamphetamine from Arizona to Montana, and Poynter and Frankforter redistributed it. In December 2014, law enforcement purchased various amounts of methamphetamine from Poynter and Frankforter, who ultimately admitted to their roles in the sales. 

In February 2015, Craver was arrested in Townsend, Montana, following a traffic complaint. Following his arrest, a search warrant was executed on his vehicle and law enforcement seized about three ounces of methamphetamine. Craver’s co-defendants told law enforcement that Craver and another co-conspirator had been given about eight ounces of methamphetamine to transport from Arizona to Montana, of which the remaining three ounces were found by law enforcement in Craver’s vehicle. 

Also in February 2015, Jayne supplied a co-conspirator with methamphetamine to transport to Montana.  Jayne also transported about a pound of methamphetamine from Arizona to Montana. Law enforcement saw Jayne in Montana City but he fled before he could be apprehended.  Law enforcement obtained a search warrant for Jayne’s vehicle and recovered about a pound of methamphetamine. Jayne was subsequently involved in a vehicle pursuit with law enforcement Feb. 20, 2015.  He again fled the scene while a co-conspirator was arrested.  A gun was found in their vehicle. After being arrested May 2015 in Oregon, Jayne admitted to his role in the conspiracy and that the gun found in the vehicle was his.

Jayne stated that he made three or four trips to Montana transporting one to three pounds of meth on each trip. Jayne stated that about a pound of meth originated in Oregon while the rest was transported from Arizona.

The following agencies provided assistance in the case: Missouri River Drug Task Force, FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Montana Division of Criminal Investigation, Helena Police Department, and the Lewis and Clark County Sherriff’s Office.