A man who trafficked almost 140 pounds of meth in Arizona last year has been sentenced to seven years in prison, authorities said Thursday.
According to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, Anthony Perez was sentenced last week and ordered to pay penalties and fees totaling over $5,000.
On December 8, 2025, a trooper from the Arizona Department of Public Safety pulled him down after noticing him breaking many traffic violations on westbound Interstate 10.
One of the offenses was driving without a license. In reality, prosecutors claimed he was never awarded a driver’s license. As a result, the car was towed and inventory searched.
During the search, officers discovered 138.8 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in duffel bags in the rear seat.
Methamphetamine is a leading factor in Arizona overdose deaths
In June 2025, the Arizona High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Opioid Monitoring Initiative published a study naming opioids and stimulants as the state’s top drug dangers, including methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine.
Arizona saw 2,735 drug overdose deaths in 2024, according to preliminary data from county medical examiner offices.
Methamphetamine was implicated in 1,655 of those deaths, accounting for 60.5% of the state total. Methamphetamine was responsible for 645 deaths as a single substance.
Methamphetamine-related overdose mortality rose by 14% between 2021 and 2024, with a minor increase between 2023 and 2024.
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