Southern Utah Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Possession of Fentanyl and Methamphetamine with Intent to Distribute

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - A St. George drug dealer was sentenced today to 120 months' imprisonment and four years of supervised release after law enforcement located fentanyl and methamphetamine inside his vehicle during a traffic violation in 2024.

The sentence, imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Ann Marie McIff Allen, comes after John Andy Larson, 49, of St. George, pleaded guilty on January 22, 2026, to possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute and possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.

According to court documents and statements made at Larson's sentencing and change of plea hearings, on November 7, 2024, a deputy with the Washington County Sheriff's Office stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation on the interstate. The driver was identified as Larson. A drug sniffing canine alerted positive to the smell of narcotics in the vehicle. Law enforcement searched and located a lockbox inside the vehicle which contained 63 grams of methamphetamine (three bags), 7.8 grams of fentanyl pills (52 pills/two bags), 1.5 grams of marijuana (one bag), and 2.5 grams of heroin (one bag). All the drugs field-tested positive.

"Larson's sentence should serve as a deterrent to other drug traffickers-if you try to make a career out of peddling poison in Utah, you are looking at a significant amount of incarceration time," said U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak of the District of Utah. "The safety of our communities is a top priority for my office and Larson's sentence underscores the collaboration of our federal, state, and local partners in realizing that priority."

The case was investigated by the Washington County Sheriff's Office and the Washington County Drug Task Force.

Assistant United States Attorney Joseph M. Hood of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.