Troopers nab Valley’s ‘Meth-a Claus’

PALMER — Driving around town delivering meth and paying his driver in drugs was what Alaska State Troopers say landed a 44-year-old Palmer man in jail last week.

According to an AST press statement released Thursday, at 12:48 a.m. Dec. 30 troopers pulled over a silver Ford Explorer on Alaska Street in Palmer because it was missing a front license plate.

Troopers say the passenger, Kenneth Vance, 44, of Palmer, had two warrants; one for failure to appear in court on a driving while license suspended charge and the other for failure to appear at a change of plea hearing.

“Further investigation revealed the driver, David Anderson, age 31 of Palmer, was driving Vance around in the Valley to distribute crystal methamphetamine for payment in the form of methamphetamine,” according to the AST report.

By the time they were stopped, Vance had eight baggies of meth worth $400.

In addition to the warrants, he was charged with third- and fourth-degree drug misconduct and jailed at Mat-Su Pre-Trial Facility on $4,250 bail and will need to find a third party to watch him before he can be released.

Anderson, meanwhile, remained free until Wednesday, when he was arrested on multiple drug misconduct charges and jailed at Mat-Su Pre-Trial on $5,000 bail. He’ll also need a to find a third-party custodian.

Jail records Thursday afternoon showed Vance had since been moved to Cook Inlet Pre-Trial in Anchorage and Anderson was still at Mat-Su Pre-Trial.

Court records show Vance pleaded no contest to felony theft in 1991, to bringing drugs into a prison in 1994, to felony drunken driving in 2008, and in 2004 he pleaded guilty to evidence tampering in exchange for prosecutors dropping charges of assault with a deadly weapon. Otherwise his record contains only misdemeanors and traffic offenses.

Anderson has only faced misdemeanor or minor charges though his records date back to 2002.

Contact reporter Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.