KC Reporter

A woman from Reeds, Missouri, has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison for her involvement in a methamphetamine distribution conspiracy. Kimberly C. Elliott, aged 45, received the sentence from U.S. District Judge M. Douglas Harpool and will serve her time without the possibility of parole.

Elliott had previously pleaded guilty on June 8, 2023, to charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and money laundering. She admitted her role in distributing methamphetamine across several counties in southwest Missouri between November 1, 2020, and April 28, 2022. Court documents reveal that Elliott personally distributed over 16 pounds of methamphetamine during this period. Law enforcement seized more than 30 pounds of the drug from various co-conspirators involved in the operation.

In one instance on May 3, 2021, Elliott sold 62 grams of methamphetamine to an undercover officer while possessing at least another pound of the substance. On May 12, she traded a Chevrolet Colorado for a Ford Explorer using approximately $15,000 obtained through illegal drug sales. Elliott was arrested on June 16 while driving the Explorer without a license and found with drugs and cash in her possession.

During investigations, Elliott disclosed that she had acquired one pound of methamphetamine two days before her arrest and had been purchasing between five and ten pounds over two months. She also indicated that shipments of up to 250 pounds were being received bi-weekly from California by conspirators.

Elliott is one among twenty individuals convicted in connection with this case and is the fourth person to be sentenced. The prosecution was led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica R. Eatmon with investigations conducted by multiple law enforcement agencies including the Missouri State Highway Patrol and Drug Enforcement Administration.

This case forms part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation aimed at dismantling high-level criminal organizations within the United States through coordinated efforts involving multiple agencies.