Fairbury Man Pleads Not Guilty to Receiving Drugs by Mail

A Fairbury man who is accused of receiving illegal drugs in the mail was arraigned in Jefferson County District Court on Thursday, April 4, 2024. David J.A. Bargen was the presiding judge.Ryan N. Gray, age 46, appeared in court in the custody of the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. He is charged with five counts:Possession of 140 grams or more of methamphetamine, a class 1B felony punishable by 20 years to life in prison;Possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute within 1.000 feet of a school, a class 2 felony punishable by one to 50 years in prison;Possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, a class 2 felony;Possession of methamphetamine, a class 4 felony punishable by up to two years in prison, nine to 12 months of post-release supervision and a $10,000 fine; andPossession of one pound or more of marijuana, a class 4 felony.According to the court file, on February 10, 2024, investigators of the Nebraska State Patrol Criminal Interdiction Unit were conducting surveillance at a commercial shipping facility in Omaha and located a suspicious package shipped from Tulare, California destined to an address in Fairbury.Investigators indicated they observed an area on the side of the package that was damaged and exposing a vacuum sealed package containing a green leafy substance inside.The Affidavit of Probable cause states, “Through their training and experience with prior cases and knowing how marijuana is packaged when shipped for distribution, the investigators believed the contents were marijuana.”A probable cause search of the package was conducted, which led to the discovery of two vacuum sealed bags of suspected marijuana with a total weight of approximately 770 grams. A presumptive field test was conducted on the leaf marijuana, yielding a positive result for THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) over 0.3 percent.Additionally, investigators located one vacuum sealed package of suspected methamphetamine weighing approximately 475 grams. A presumptive field test was conducted on the methamphetamine, yielding a positive result for methamphetamine.State Patrol investigators were granted an anticipatory search warrant for the delivery address in Fairbury upon someone receiving the package during a controlled delivery.The package was delivered and a suspect identified as Gray was seen by law enforcement taking the package and placing it in his car.Gray was placed under arrest at the scene.The defendant was originally represented by public defender Scott Gropp at his first hearing in county court. Since that time, he has obtained new representation. One of his attorneys, Joseph Murray, appeared with him in court.Another hearing is scheduled for June 13, 2024.As of press time, the defendant remains in custody with a $75,000 (10 percent) bond.

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