‘Shake-and-bake method not blueprint for a commercial meth lab operation’

A man who has pleaded guilty over allegations he maintained a hotel room for a clandestine crystal methamphetamine or “ice” laboratory on Saipan now argues that he and his associates were merely making meth to support their addiction and not to sell the drug.

Vincent David Cabrera Jr., through counsel Benjamin K. Petersburg, said that making “ice” through the shake-and-bake method is not a “blueprint for a commercial operation.”

Petersburg is recommending a sentence of just 10 years in prison for Cabrera.

On the other hand, assistant U.S. attorney Garth R. Backe described Cabrera as the “organizer” and leader” of the conspiracy to manufacture and sell meth.

Backe said Cabrera maintained a room at the Vegas Resort for the purpose of manufacturing (not to mention distributing) methamphetamine. He said this is made clear by a Drug Enforcement Administration surveillance.

Backe said it is also made clear by the evidence obtained from the room of the night of Cabrera’s arrest.

The prosecutor said Cabrera agreed to this fact in his plea agreement that he also maintained a room at the Vegas Resort for purposes of manufacturing methamphetamine.

In Cabrera’s recommendation, Petersburg said the defendant did not have money or income to buy the expensive, high-quality imported “ice” and, instead, made low-quality meth using basic household items and the shake-and-bake method to feed his personal addiction. He said instructions for the shake-and-bake method are widely available on the internet.

To his credit, Petersburg said, Cabrera did not steal, rob, or burglarize in order to support his addiction, but found a way to make his own meth to support his habits.

Petersburg said some of Cabrera’s friends and other users naturally joined in, as this was a low-cost way to support their own addictions.

Petersburg said Cabrera and his associates made meth for their own consumption, not to sell it.

Petersburg said it is somewhat difficult to acquire enough pseudoephedrine and other ingredients to make even a single small batch of shake-and-bake meth.

He said small batches produced small quantities of low-quality meth which was used by the manufacturers themselves to support their own habits.

Petersburg said some of these individuals also cooked meth, often without Cabrera’s knowledge or involvement whatsoever.

He pointed out that this is consistent with the fact that these individuals were cooking to support their own habits, not as part of an ongoing coordinated conspiracy.

Describing them as loose group of meth addicts, the lawyer said they did not constitute a “drug enterprise.”

“This is not an organized commercial operation where meth is being produced for sale and distribution,” Petersburg said, adding that this is simply a group of users making meth in two-liter soda bottles in order to support their own habits.

“Indeed, even from a total quantity perspective, the amount U.S. Probation Office claims this group cooked over a period of seven months is just 50 grams,” Petersburg said.

The lawyer said while on its face, this is a serious offense carrying significant penalties, a closer look reveals that Cabrera’s conduct is not so serious as the typical manufacturer of meth for the purpose of distribution.

Indeed, he said, while the idea of a meth lab conjures up images of complicated set ups with intricate chemistry glassware, this is not that sort of case.

“We are dealing with two-liter soda bottles, store-bought items, and over-the-counter medication,” Petersburg said.

He said the group of persons involved was small and included a number of addicts and users who contributed items in order to get a fix.

He said they did so without violence or committing other crimes commonly associated with addiction.

To a significant extent, Petersburg said, it was a self-contained group that did not impact the community.

Cabrera pleaded guilty last Sept. 17 to an indictment charging him with conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine as part of a plea deal.

The offense carries a maximum penalty of not more than a 20-year term of imprisonment, a fine not to exceed $1 million, not less than a three-year term of supervised release, restitution, and a $100 special penalty assessment.

Under the plea deal, the U.S. government expects defendant’s sentencing guideline range to be 210 months and 240 months of imprisonment because the statutory maximum for the offense to which he pleaded guilty to is 20 years.

Sentencing was continued to Feb. 27.

According to Cabrera’s factual admissions, between on or July 1, 2017 and Feb. 25, 2018, he, along with Eugene Blas Repeki Jr., Rick Urumelog Omar Jr., Sidney Capelle Kani, and others, agreed to make methamphetamine.

Cabrera said he knew of this agreement to make “ice” and that he joined in the agreement, knowing of its purpose and intending to help accomplish it.

He said they would smoke the manufactured methamphetamine, as well as sell and/or give to other people.

Last September, Repeki, also known as Uncle, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture and distribute methamphetamine.

Last May, David Muña Sablan pleaded guilty to conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine.