A repeat offender from Kelso was convicted after leading police on a high-speed chase and throwing kilo bags of meth into the Cowlitz River in March, 2011.
Jesus Ramirez-Lucio, 32, of Washougal and Steven McCracken, 32, of Kelso will both face a minimum 10 years in prison at their January sentencing for conspiracy to distribute meth, according to a bulletin from U.S. Attorney Jenny A. Durkan. Ramirez-Lucio was also convicted of distributing meth, and McCracken was convicted of possessing meth with intent to deliver.
McCracken has been convicted three other times for distributing meth in 1999, 2002 and 2006.
In March, someone working with police told the Clark-Skamania Drug Task Force that the pair was planning a drug deal, according to trial records. When they met at a Kelso home March 25, 2011, McCracken gave Ramirez-Lucio more than $34,000 for three pounds of meth.
After the deal, officers followed the men as they left the house in separate cars. Police pulled over McCracken on Interstate 5, but as an officer approached the driver’s window, McCracken pulled out into traffic, leading police on a high-speed chase, the bulletin said.
