Kalamazoo Drug Trafficker Sentenced For Illicit Narcotics Distribution
Monday, January 27, 2025, 11:15 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
GRAND RAPIDS, MI.- On Thursday, a 38-year-old Kalamazoo, Michigan, man learned he would be spending nearly the next three decades in federal prison for distributing large quantities of deadly fentanyl and methamphetamine throughout the Western District of Michigan, leaving a path of destruction, death, and broken families for carrying out drug trafficking on the streets of Kalamazoo.
On Thursday, January 23, 2025, Michael Warren Smith, Jr., 38, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan and was sentenced to 357 months in federal prison for his previously entered guilty pleas to narcotics trafficking.
Smith previously appeared in federal court in October 2024 and pleaded guilty to one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute 500 Grams or More of Methamphetamine; Possession with Intent to Distribute 400 Grams or More of Fentanyl; and Possession with Intent to Distribute Quantities of Cocaine.
According To The U.S. Attorney’s Office
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Andrew Birge and documents filed with the District Court, on October 11, 2023, during an ongoing narcotics investigation, law enforcement investigators executed a court-authorized search of Smith’s Elmwood Street residence and his apartment on West Main Street, both in the City of Kalamazoo.
During the search of the Elmwood Street residence, investigators found Smith in the home. Smith was taken into custody and was found to have over 185 grams of fentanyl in his pants pockets. Inside Smith’s bedroom, investigators uncovered and seized 388.5 grams of 99 percent pure methamphetamine and other evidence of drug trafficking.
During the search of Smith’s West Main Street apartment, investigators uncovered and seized around five pounds of 99 percent pure methamphetamine, over 500 grams of fentanyl, over 470 grams of cocaine, and five loaded firearms. During his October 2024 plea allocution, Smith admitted to possessing all the illicit narcotics seized and further admitted that he intended to sell them.
“We are pleased with this sentence,” said Mike Ferguson, Captain of the Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team. “Mr. Smith possessed a large amount of drugs and guns. Drugs and guns that would’ve hit the streets of Kalamazoo if not for the hard work of KVET and our federal partners.”
“Mr. Smith’s sentencing should serve as a reminder that the DEA will relentlessly pursue those responsible for the distribution of illicit drugs accountable,” said Andrew Lawton, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Detroit Field Division. “Methamphetamine has devastating effects on communities, and fentanyl is responsible for the loss of tens of thousands of lives. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to bring to justice those who profit from this illegal and dangerous trade.”
