A Savoonga woman was sentenced on Apr. 24 to ten years in prison for trafficking large amounts of illegal drugs into her community, according to federal authorities.
The case highlights the challenges rural Alaskan communities face from drug trafficking organizations that target remote areas with limited law enforcement resources.
Court documents show that in December 2022, law enforcement officials intercepted a suspicious parcel addressed to Michelle Pungowiyi at a post office box in Savoonga, which has a population of about 835 people on St. Lawrence Island. The parcel contained over 3,000 illicit fentanyl pills. Weeks later, another package addressed to Pungowiyi was found with more than 4,000 fentanyl pills. A third package sent in February 2023 was delivered before authorities could intercept it.
Investigators determined that Pungowiyi communicated with the alleged ringleader of the organization behind these shipments and confirmed through text messages that the first two packages never reached their intended destination.
“Ms. Pungowiyi tried to traffic over 7,000 illegal fentanyl pills into the small community of Savoonga, enough to potentially kill the entire village population eight times over,” said U.S. Attorney Scott E. Bradford for the District of Oregon. “Her role in this drug trafficking organization shows that suppliers and dealers will stop at nothing to exploit Alaskans, no matter where they are located. Thanks to the incredible law enforcement and prosecutorial work, we are taking drug traffickers out of the pipeline one after another.”
“Ms. Pungowiyi trafficked deadly fentanyl into her own remote Alaskan village targeting her vulnerable community with enough poison to kill them all,” said Robert A. Saccone, Special Agent in Charge, DEA Seattle Field Division. “Through Fentanyl Free America, DEA is working alongside our partners to disrupt the criminal networks responsible for flooding communities with deadly drugs and to hold accountable those who profit from dealing in death. We will continue to pursue traffickers at every level and use every available tool to protect the American people from this unprecedented threat.”
“The distribution and use of illegal and dangerous narcotics have no place in the U.S. Postal Service and the State of Alaska. The conviction of Pungowiyi removes a plague from their community and a dangerous criminal,” said Inspector in Charge Anthony Galetti of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Seattle Division.
The investigation involved several agencies including Drug Enforcement Administration offices in Seattle and Anchorage as well as Alaska State Troopers.
Assistant U.S Attorney Steven D. Clymer was appointed as Special Attorney due to recusal by most personnel from Alaska’s U.S Attorney’s Office; Assistant U.S Attorney Chris Schroeder prosecuted.
