A South Dakota man was sentenced Monday in Lincoln County District Court to 15 to 20 years in prison in a methamphetamine distribution case.
Miguel Angel Pena Cervantes, 43, received the sentence from District Judge Michael Piccolo following a conviction for possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver.
Court records show Cervantes was arrested in June after law enforcement located him with a stolen vehicle in a parking lot south of Interstate 80 Exit 177 in North Platte. The vehicle, a Chevrolet Malibu with South Dakota license plates, had been reported stolen in Fort Morgan, Colorado.
According to the arrest affidavit, Cervantes acknowledged the vehicle was stolen when questioned by a Lincoln County sheriff’s deputy. During an inventory of the vehicle’s contents, deputies found a container with marijuana inside a duffel bag in the trunk, which led investigators to conduct a more thorough search of the car.
During that search, deputies discovered two packages of methamphetamine concealed behind the dashboard area of the vehicle. One package weighed about 12 ounces and the other weighed more than a pound.
Cervantes initially pleaded not guilty and requested a jury trial. However, he later accepted a plea agreement in January. As part of that agreement, prosecutors dismissed the stolen vehicle charge and reduced the methamphetamine charge to possession of 28 to 139 grams, a Class 1C felony under Nebraska law.
Court records show Cervantes received credit for 260 days already served in jail while awaiting sentencing.