MISSOULA — A judge has given a medical marijuana provider from Whitefish seven years in prison in one of the harshest sentences related to last year’s federal raids of large Montana medical pot operations.
Christopher Ryan Durbin pleaded guilty in March to charges of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute marijuana and structuring or making bank deposits of less than $10,000 to avoid IRS reporting requirements.
The Missoulian reports that U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy sentenced Durbin Wednesday to 84 months in prison, with five years’ supervised release and a $200 special assessment.
An associate, 33-year-old Trey Scales of Whitefish, received a nine-month prison term in the same case.
Prosecutors say Durbin owned and operated several medical marijuana businesses in the Columbia Falls area and was in charge of the distribution network.