Federal Court Sentences Throughout Montana This Week

Missoula, MT (KGVO-AM News) - KGVO News has gathered stories on the sentencing of individuals in Federal Court jurisdictions throughout Montana over the past week, including Missoula, Great Falls, and Billings.

A Digest of Federal Court Decisions that Sent Criminals to Prison

In Missoula, on Tuesday, October 31, the Office of Montana’s U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich reported that a Wyoming man was sentenced to three years in prison, to be followed by 10 years of supervised release, after he admitted he traveled to Montana with the intent to engage in sex with a minor. Jeremy George Lusk, 39, of Crowley, Wyoming, pleaded guilty in June to travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen presided.

A Cyberstalking Conviction sent a New Mexico Man to Federal Prison

In Great Falls, A New Mexico man who admitted to cyberstalking a Poplar woman for more than two years was sentenced to 21 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. Jicarilla Juan Tiznado, 23, of Dulce, New Mexico, pleaded guilty in June to cyberstalking. The government alleged in court documents that from about June 2020 through October 2022, Tiznado repeatedly harassed and intimidated the victim, identified as Jane Doe, using his computer, cell phone, email, and the Internet. Tiznado called, emailed, and messaged Jane Doe hundreds of times, threatening to harm and kill her, kill her brother, and harm her friends and relatives.

Chief U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided.

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A Washington State Woman Sentenced for Trafficking Methamphetamine

In Billings, A Washington woman was sentenced in federal court to 10 years and one month in prison, to be followed by four years of supervised release, after she was caught while trying to flee law enforcement and admitted to trafficking methamphetamine in the Billings community, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said. Lyzette Vargas, 41, of Spokane, Washington, pleaded guilty in June to possession with intent to distribute meth. The government alleged in court documents that in September 2022, agents with the Eastern Montana High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force learned that Vargas was distributing large quantities of fentanyl pills in Billings.

U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided.

It is important to note that those individuals sentenced in federal court must serve every day of their sentence, as there is no parole in the federal system.