California Man Sentenced for Distributing Cocaine in Great Falls and Browning

GREAT FALLS - The United States Attorney’s Office announced today that 49-year old Frederick Lona of Monrovia, California, was sentenced to 12 months in prison, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.  U.S. District Judge Brian M. Morris presided over the hearing.  

Frederick Lona assisted in facilitating a drug conspiracy in 2011 and 2012 that distributed cocaine and methamphetamine to Great Falls and the Blackfeet Indian Reservation.  Lona and his co-defendants obtained the cocaine and methamphetamine in California, and directly supplied individuals in Montana with the drugs for redistribution in the Great Falls and Browning communities.  Lona’s four co-defendants were previously sentenced in 2013 for their roles in this offense. 

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Betley and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.   Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.