Jackson County drug dealer sentenced to federal prison

MEDFORD, Ore.—A Jackson County drug dealer was sentenced to federal prison Friday after law enforcement located distribution quantities of drugs, including fentanyl, and a firearm in his abandoned vehicle, according to a media release from U.S. Attorney’s Office – District of Oregon.

Anthony Ross Minneci, 36, was sentenced to 188 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release.

According to court documents, in January 2019, following his release from prison for drug trafficking and illegally possessing a firearm, Minneci resumed selling drugs throughout Southern Oregon. From early 2019 to March 2022, Minneci was charged in multiple cases in Jackson and Josephine County Circuit Courts for drug trafficking, illegally possessing firearms, and eluding police.

On January 1, 2022, a deputy with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office observed a vehicle failing to stop at an intersection and driving at a high rate of speed. The deputy identified Minneci as the driver and sole occupant of the vehicle and pursued him briefly before Minneci got away. Later that evening, investigators found the vehicle unoccupied in a rural area, but were unable to locate Minneci.

On January 5, 2022, investigators executed a search warrant on the vehicle and located fentanyl, heroin and methamphetamine, as well as a firearm, ammunition, and drug paraphernalia. Investigators also found items identifying Minneci, including a driver’s license. On March 15, 2022, Minneci was arrested in Siskiyou County, California, following another attempt to elude police. At the time of his arrest, Minneci was found in possession of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and two firearms.

On May 5, 2022, a federal grand jury in Medford returned a three-count indictment charging Minneci with possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute, illegally possessing ammunition as a convicted felon, and possessing firearms in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

On February 26, 2024, Minneci pleaded guilty to possessing a controlled substance with the intent to distribute.

The cases against Minneci were investigated by the Medford Area Drug and Gang Enforcement Team (MADGE) with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Rogue Area Drug Enforcement Team (RADE), Oregon State Police, the Jackson County Sheriff and District Attorney’s Offices, Medford Police Department, and the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Marco A. Boccato, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

MADGE is a multi-jurisdictional narcotics task force that identifies, disrupts, and dismantles local, multi-state, and international drug trafficking organizations using an intelligence-driven, multi-agency prosecutor-supported approach. MADGE is supported by the Oregon-Idaho High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) and is composed of members from the Medford Police Department, the Jackson County Sheriff and District Attorney’s Offices, the Jackson County Community Corrections, FBI, and HSI.

The Oregon-Idaho HIDTA program is an Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) sponsored counterdrug grant program that coordinates with and provides funding resources to multi-agency drug enforcement initiatives.