A Las Vegas man was sentenced to 54 months in federal prison this week for selling nearly three pounds of methamphetamine in two separate deals during the summer of 2024, a sentence that came in well below what prosecutors had asked for. Urkeno Walter was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release once he gets out.
U.S. District Judge Gloria M. Navarro handed down the sentence on Wednesday, according to news3lv.com. The government had pushed for a much stiffer penalty, recommending 78 months behind bars, but the judge opted for a shorter term. Walter had pleaded guilty to two counts of distributing a controlled substance, methamphetamine, the station reported.
Two Deals, Nearly Three Pounds of Meth
The case centers on two transactions roughly a month apart. On July 2, 2024, Walter met someone in a Las Vegas parking lot and sold 416.8 grams, about one pound, of methamphetamine for cash, according to a court-document summary cited by the U.S. Department of Justice, District of Nevada. Then on Aug. 1, 2024, he sold a much larger quantity, 892.4 grams, or roughly two pounds, again in exchange for cash, per the same account.
Combined, the two deals accounted for nearly three pounds of methamphetamine moving through Las Vegas in the span of about a month. The Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Brister prosecuted it, the station's report notes.
Sentence Fell Short of Prosecutors' Request
The gap between what prosecutors sought and what Walter ultimately received, 78 months versus 54, stands out as one of the more notable details in the case. The article does not say why the judge departed from the government's recommendation, and that reasoning remains unexplained in the available reporting.
Walter is identified in reporting simply as a Las Vegas man, with no further personal background included in the case materials reviewed for this story.
