Three residents from Cameron, MO are among five defendants who recently pleaded guilty to their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says 26-year old Benjamin W. Clark, of Cameron, pleaded guilty on Monday to the charge contained in a Nov. 16, 2017, federal indictment.

Clark is reportedly the fifth defendant to plead guilty to participating in the drug-trafficking conspiracy. Co-defendant 28-year old Jalie J. Brinlee, of Cameron, pleaded guilty on Jan. 4, 2019. Other co-defendants, 23-year old Felicia C. Ward, of Cameron; 26-year old Robert J. Keegan, of Harrisonville, MO, and 34-year old Frank E. Hundley, of Kansas City, MO, pleaded guilty on Dec. 28, 2018.

Brinlee and Keegan also pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime.

All five of the co-defendants admitted they participated in a conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine from January to May 2017. Clark and Brinlee reportedly purchased meth from various suppliers and distributed it to customers in Cameron, Kansas City and elsewhere.

In May 2017, Keegan was stopped by law enforcement and was found to be in possession of a Hi-point .40-caliber handgun and a duffel bag containing approximately 3.8 kilograms of methamphetamine.

On May 24, 2017, a trooper with the Missouri State Highway Patrol stopped Ward, who was carrying a Glock 9mm handgun in her purse. Ward had retrieved the handgun from the vehicle where Clark and Brinlee were located, and Brinlee reportedly admitted to possessing the firearm, prior to transferring it to Ward.

Also found in Ward's purse was approximately one kilogram of meth, which Brinlee also admitted to possessing at the time of the traffic stop.

Under the terms of their plea agreements, Clark, Brinlee and Keegan will each be sentenced to 18 years in federal prison without parole.

Under federal statutes, Ward and Hundley each are subject to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life.

Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.

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