Grand Island man gets 17 years in prison for meth, gun charges

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — A Grand Island man will spend 17 years in federal prison after trying to traffic meth into Nebraska.

U.S. District Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced William Packer on Wednesday, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Packer got 151 months in prison for possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute and 60 months for possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.

On April 6, 2021, Packer was in a vehicle that was pulled over in Norton, Kansas.

He ran off and dropped a backpack that had 4.5 pounds of meth inside.

The driver and another co-defendant identified Packer as the man who fled.

They told law enforcement that he was bringing the meth to Nebraska for them to sell. Norton is about 10 miles south of the state line.

Six months later, Packer was arrested on a warrant for that offense.

Law enforcement found three firearms, 1.6 pounds of meth and $16,060 in drug sale proceeds, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Packer will serve his sentences concurrently, then spend five years on supervised release.

His co-defendants pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and will be sentenced in June.