A Phoenix man who helped supply a Montana drug ring with pounds of methamphetamine and fentanyl will spend 14 years in federal prison, closing out a case that moved from Arizona packages to traffic stops across the Billings area.
Brian Uriel Lopez-Orozco, 27, pleaded guilty in February to drug conspiracy and distribution charges. He was also sentenced to five years of supervised release, according to Arizona’s Family.
How The Arizona-To-Montana Pipeline Unraveled
The investigation centered on Cynthia Pruett and associates Aaron Meeks and Shaynee Gibbs. In a 2024 case update, the Montana U.S. Attorney’s Office said a traffic stop involving Gibbs and Meeks led investigators to a package containing roughly 3.8 pounds of methamphetamine and fentanyl, along with a firearm, ammunition and more than $12,000 in cash.
Other searches uncovered additional meth, fentanyl and cash in the Billings area, while a later traffic stop in Broadview turned up about half a pound of fentanyl, Arizona’s Family reported. Prosecutors said Meeks had previously lived in Arizona, bought drugs from Lopez-Orozco and worked as his personal mechanic before moving to Billings in 2021 and helping connect his former supplier with Pruett.
Montana’s Drug Supply Has Kept Federal Courts Busy
The case landed amid continued pressure on Montana’s methamphetamine and fentanyl markets. A 2025 report from the Montana Department of Justice said meth seizures rose 37% in 2024, reaching 304 pounds, while fentanyl seizures totaled more than 275,000 dosage units.
Co-Defendants Also Received Federal Sentences
Lopez-Orozco was not the only person to face serious prison time in the case. The Montana U.S. Attorney’s Office previously said Pruett was sentenced to 15 years and three months, while Gibbs received a 10-year sentence after pleading guilty to drug trafficking charges.
