Storm Lake Times Pilot

Man gets 15 years for having 1.5 lbs. of meth


Spencer man also had loaded gun in BV buy

A Spencer man was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for meth distribution in Buena Vista County and firearm possession.

On Oct. 9, Christopher Frerichs, 44, pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm, charges that earned 15 years in total.           

Evidence at the hearing last week showed that between March 2019 and August 2019, Frerichs and others conspired to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine in the Iowa Great Lakes area. Last August, during a controlled drug buy operation in BV County, law enforcement seized approximately 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine and a loaded .45 caliber handgun from Frerichs. 

Later on the same date, law enforcement seized another 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine from Frerichs’ residence near Worthington, Minn.  Evidence further showed that Frerichs obtained and distributed over 15 pounds of methamphetamine from the end of 2018 through 2019. During that time, Frerichs made at least three trips to his primary source of supply in Colorado, and one trip to another source of supply in Arizona.

U.S. District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand handed down the sentence, which also carries a five-year term of supervised release.