An Easton, Mo., man was found guilty by a federal trial jury today of participating in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in the St. Joseph area. According to U.S. Attorney Tammy Dickinson, Jeffrey Ray Pendleton was also convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

A cooperating individual says Pendleton, also known as “Fro,” orchestrated the beating of a girl in the basement of a St. Joe residence over a drug debt. The victim of the beating sought medical attention at a hospital emergency room.

Pendleton forced the beating victim to pose for cell phone photos with a hypodermic needle in her arm, and told her that if she reported the beating he would send the photos to family services and the victim would lose custody of her children.

Trial evidence showed Pendleton was involved in the conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in the St. Joseph area from Jan. 1, 2009, to July 19, 2012. During the same time, Pendleton conspired with others to engage in financial transactions with the proceeds of the drug-trafficking conspiracy.

He was arrested by the Kansas Highway Patrol on April 30, 2010, after a high speed vehicle pursuit in Lenexa, Kan. Pendleton fled from troopers and local officers until his vehicle became disabled, then ran on foot before being taken into custody.

A former girlfriend of Pendleton and other cooperating defendants told investigators that Pendleton possessed methamphetamine every two to three days during late 2009 and 2010. Two traveled with Pendleton when he went to Kansas City, Kan., to pick up $10,000 worth of methamphetamine, which he brought back with them to St. Joseph for distribution.

Other individuals also told investigators they had witnessed Pendleton in possession of methamphetamine on numerous occasions. They stated they saw Pendleton with “softball”-size and fist-size bags of meth.

The jury in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo., deliberated for about 90 minutes before returning the verdicts to U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner, ending a trial that began Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014.

Under federal statutes, Pendleton is subject to a mandatory minimum sentence 10 years in federal prison without parole, up to a sentence of life in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $10.5 million. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.