Elmer City man gets 60 months in prison for drug trafficking

An Elmer City man has been sentenced to five years in prison for selling drugs from his home to a young woman who was found dead from an overdose the next day.

Andre Pierre Picard, 67, has been sentenced after pleading guilty to Distribution of Heroin and Distribution of Methamphetamine, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Washington announced June 29 in a press release.

United States District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice imposed a sentence of 60 months in federal custody to be followed by five years of supervised release. 

According to court documents and information disclosed during the sentencing hearing, on or about April 28, 2020, Piccard sold heroin to a young woman, referred to only as “D.S.”, from his home in Elmer City. The very next day, D.S. was found lifeless, and the autopsy results determined the death was caused by a drug overdose.

From April 2022 through December 2022, the Bureau of Indian Affairs Division of Drug Enforcement engaged in several controlled purchases from Picard, ultimately arresting him and linking him to the sale of drugs that appeared to have contributed to D.S.’s overdose.

“I’m grateful for our incredible law enforcement team, who devote their lives to protecting our community,” said United States Attorney Vanessa R. Waldref, the chief federal law enforcement officer for the Eastern District of Washington. “Today’s sentence demonstrates the seriousness of Mr. Picard’s drug trafficking activities. While Mr. Picard described himself as a low-level drug dealer, he was dealing in large quantities of illegal drugs given the relative size of the Elmer City community and the Colville Reservation.  Ultimately, Mr. Picard’s distribution had devastating consequences. I commend the FBI and Bureau of Indian Affairs for their work to remove illegal drugs from our communities. I am also grateful to the law enforcement team from the Colville Tribe, which worked hand-in-hand with our federal partners to seek justice in this case.”

“Mr. Picard showed a willful disregard for the members of his own community,” said Gregory L. Austin, assistant special agent in charge of the FBI’s Seattle field office. “Despite witnessing the devastating effects of these dangerous narcotics, he continued to distribute them to people he knew. The FBI and our partners will continue to fight the plague of illegal drugs on our state’s reservations.”

“The Bureau of Indian Affairs Division of Drug Enforcement is committed to removing dangerous drug dealers in Indian Country, including those that hide in plain sight and continually profit off the pain and tragic loss of their fellow community members, such as Mr. Picard,” stated Deputy Associate Director, Jerin Falcon. “The Bureau of Indian Affairs Division of Drug Enforcement is devoted to continuing to protect our native communities and is thankful for the partnership with the Colville Tribal Police, FBI, DEA and other local law enforcement agencies.”

The case was investigated by the Colville Tribal Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Division of Drug Enforcement. The case was prosecuted by Richard R. Barker and David H. Herzog, Assistant U.S. Attorneys for the Eastern District of Washington.