SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A man from San Diego was sentenced in federal court for shipping large quantities of meth to southwest Missouri.

According to a press release, Francisco Magallon, 37, was sentenced to 21 years and eight months in federal prison without parole.

On Feb. 17, 2022, Magallon pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Magallon admitted that he shipped at least five packages that contained multiple pounds of methamphetamine from California to co-defendant James Mangold, 44, of Mt. Vernon. Mangold then distributed the methamphetamine to others involved in the conspiracy, from Jan. 24 to April 14, 2020.

According to court documents, Magallon shipped at least 31.98 kilograms of methamphetamine from California to southwest Missouri.

On April 14, 2020, law enforcement investigators intercepted a package Magallon shipped to the address of co-defendant Dustin Brenneman, 41, of Mt. Vernon, but under a different name. The package contained five bundles of methamphetamine that weighed a total of approximately 6.2 kilograms. An undercover law enforcement officer delivered the package to Brenneman’s residence and was met by Mangold, who accepted and signed for the parcel under the fake name.

According to FedEx records, Magallon shipped seven parcels to Mangold that weighed a total of 85 pounds from Jan. 24 to April 13, 2020. Magallon admitted that five of the parcels he shipped to Mangold contained methamphetamine.

Magallon is among five defendants who have been sentenced in this case. Brenneman was sentenced on July 14, 2022, to five years and six months in federal prison without parole. Mangold and co-defendant John R. Caldwell, 55, of Purdy, Mo., have pleaded guilty and are the only remaining defendants who still await sentencing.