Former Everton city clerk sentenced to 10 years for money-laundering conspiracy
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – The former city clerk in Everton, Missouri, has been sentenced in federal court for her role in a money-laundering conspiracy related to methamphetamine trafficking.
Kristy A. Conn, 46, of Everton, was sentenced on Wednesday, Sept. 23, to 10 years in federal prison without parole.
Conn pleaded guilty on Nov. 1, 2019, to conspiracy to commit money laundering. Conn admitted that she participated in the money-laundering conspiracy from June 20 to Dec. 6, 2017. During that time, Conn was the city clerk in Everton. Conn admitted that she directed Ginger L. Huerta, 41, of Halfway, Missouri, to send wire transfers of the proceeds from the distribution of methamphetamine to members of the drug-trafficking organization in California and Mexico.
The drug-trafficking organization was responsible for the distribution of more than 4.5 kilograms of methamphetamine in the Springfield, Missouri, area. Huerta pleaded guilty on Oct. 31, 2019, in a separate but related case, to her role in both the drug-trafficking and money-laundering conspiracies and awaits sentencing.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration St. Louis Division, Kansas City District Office, along with the IRS-Criminal Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Springfield, Mo., Police Department, the Greene County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Dade County, Missouri, Sheriff’s Department, and the Oldham County, Texas, Sheriff’s Department.
Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force
This case is part of the Department of Justice’s Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program. The OCDETF program is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s drug supply reduction strategy. OCDETF was established in 1982 to conduct comprehensive, multilevel attacks on major drug trafficking and money laundering organizations. Today, OCDETF combines the resources and expertise of its member federal agencies in cooperation with state and local law enforcement. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illicit drug supply.