Man busted in North Salt Lake with 20 pounds of meth, police say

A 43-year-old man has been charged in federal court with possessing 20 pounds of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute it in the Salt Lake Valley.

An undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agent and a confidential source met the man at a North Salt Lake apartment to buy the drugs from him on Aug. 7, according to a complaint unsealed this week in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City. When the man retrieved the drugs from his vehicle, police arrested him, court documents state.

During a subsequent interview with police, the man said he brought the bag of methamphetamine to Utah from California with the intent to sell it, the documents state.

The arrest led to three other men being arrested in California this week in connection with either supplying or transporting the drugs, said Paul Roach, DEA spokesman. All four men are linked to the Sinaloa cartel, Roach added.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's Office said the 43-year-old man is a Mexican national who was in the United States legally. He faces a potential sentence of up to life in prison with a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence.

mmcfall@sltrib.com