GRAND FORKS, ND (trfnews.i234.me) – A Grand Forks man, Jacob Andrew Lopez, 22, was sentenced to eight years in prison on Thursday, Sept. 5, after pleading guilty to Class A felony possession of more than 50 grams of cocaine with intent to deliver. The charges stemmed from a March drug bust at his residence, which uncovered significant amounts of cocaine and other drugs.
As part of a plea agreement, Lopez also pleaded guilty to a Class A misdemeanor for drug paraphernalia possession. In exchange, a third charge, Class C felony possession of a Schedule IV depressant with intent to deliver, was dismissed.
Lopez, along with co-defendants Jonathan Alvarez and Nathaniel James Gepford, was arrested after law enforcement executed a search warrant at their shared apartment. Court documents revealed that officers found approximately 186 grams of cocaine packaged in small baggies, 85 Xanax pills, drug paraphernalia, and digital scales in the common areas of the apartment.
Lopez received an eight-year prison sentence with the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and will serve two years of supervised probation upon release. He was also credited for 175 days already served in jail.
Co-defendant Gepford was sentenced to two years of supervised probation in July, while Alvarez received a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence in August.