Six Lubbock Methamphetamine Traffickers Sentenced to Combined 143 Years in Prison

Waylon Williams, 42, pled guilty to one count of distribution and possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of methamphetamine in January 2026.

"These lengthy prison sentences assure North Texans that the federal government is partnering - through the Homeland Security Task Forces - with our great state and local law enforcement officers to dismantle drug traffickers and their networks," said U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould. "Methamphetamine is a highly addictive drug that ruins lives and destroys families. Thanks to the hard work of our prosecutors and our law enforcement partners, these individuals have been held accountable for their crimes."

Five others charged in the same case were previously sentenced to prison terms for their respective roles in the methamphetamine trafficking:

• Charles Clay Pruitt, 48, of Lubbock, was sentenced in April 2026 to 480 months (40 years).
• Jason Lee Garza, also known as "J-Bird", 50, of Lubbock, was sentenced in June 2026 to 420 months (35 years).
• Brody Wayne Duncan, 32, of Post, Texas, was sentenced in May 2026 to 240 months (20 years).
• Matthew Young, 50, of Lubbock, was sentenced in April 2026 to 188 months (15.6 years) in federal prison.
• Veronica Pena aka Veronica Zambrano, 51, of Lubbock, was sentenced in May 2026 to 180 months (15 years) in federal prison.

Williams, Pruitt, Garza, Duncan, and Pena were sentenced by United States District Judge James Wesley Hendrix. Young was sentenced by Fifth Circuit Judge Andrew S. Oldham, sitting by assignment.

Court documents reflect that beginning as early as 2020, the defendants conspired to distribute large quantities of methamphetamine in Lubbock and Post. Agents investigated the conspiracy over several months, culminating in the execution of several search warrants resulting in the seizure of approximately 985 grams of methamphetamine, $9,816 in currency, and multiple firearms. Searches of the defendants' cellular phones revealed extensive communications where they would coordinate their methamphetamine trafficking operation. One set of messages between the conspirators also discussed destroying evidence prior to law enforcement's execution of a search warrant.

The Texas Department of Public Safety and the Drug Enforcement Administration led the investigation, with substantial assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Lubbock Police Department, Lubbock County Sheriff's Office, Garza County Sheriff's Office, and the Texas Anti-Gang Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Rancourt prosecuted the case.

This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting, the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.

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