GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A Muskegon man convicted of trafficking illegal drugs was sentenced to spend 300 months – or 25 years – behind bars.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office – Western District of Michigan says 33-year-old Saul Douglas Briggs kept drugs, guns and other materials in a home on Letart Avenue starting in March 2020. He and his colleagues reportedly sold 1.5 kg of fentanyl to a trafficker from Missouri in March 2022.
Authorities executed a search warrant one month later and uncovered 5 kg of fentanyl and fentanyl-like substances as well as varying amounts of heroin, morphine, cocaine and methamphetamine, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
We’re told investigators also found seven guns, four of them reported stolen.
Federal attorneys say the amount of fentanyl recovered would have been enough to kill millions.
Briggs was previously sentenced for trafficking cocaine.
“The egregiousness of Mr. Briggs’ crimes cannot be overstated. He possessed enormous quantities of fentanyl to sell in our community and beyond,” says U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “Fentanyl is deadly, and it is made even more fatal when combined with other drugs and loaded firearms. My office is committed to disrupting drug trafficking rings and bringing the people who peddle this poison to justice. Mr. Briggs’ sentence is a vital step in ensuring the continued safety of the communities we serve."
The DOJ says Briggs was sentenced to 240 months for possessing and intending to distribute controlled substances and 60 months for illegally possessing firearms. He will then serve 10 years of supervised release.
