A woman caught during a massive drug sweep in Elkhart County last year has been sentenced to prison.
32-year-old Heather Slone was sentenced to 12 years in prison and another eight years on probation after pleading guilty to dealing methamphetamine. The Elkhart Truth reports it’s actually less than the 15 years she was facing as part of her plea agreement.
She was arrested in November 2016 during a sweep of the Jacquez drug ring. She was found with 140 grams of meth, over $9,000 in cash, two sets of digital scales, and a .380 caliber handgun.
She was arrested at the house of her boyfriend, Carlos Rivera. He’s already been sentenced to 20 years in prison and has also reportedly sent Slone letters from prison, apologizing for getting her involved. Her attorney said that when she met Rivera, “that was the start of the demise of Heather Slone.”
The Elkhart Truth reports Deputy Elkhart County Prosecutor Steven Clark noted that, not only wasn’t Slone targeted in the investigation, but she was far from a mastermind. Still, he also acknowledged that she did indeed have a role in the drug ring and knew what was going on.
Judge Michael Christofeno is ordering Slone to take part in a community therapy program while in prison and may lower her sentence, and thus return to her 13-year-old son, if she completes that and other programs along with behaving in prison.
