Luke H. Schwartz of North Platte, was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison for conspiring to distribute meth, U.S. Attorney Susan Lehr said.

U.S. District Judge Susan M. Bazis handed down the sentence. There is no parole in the federal system. After Schwartz, 44, gets out of prison, he will remain under supervision for five years.  

Lehr said between July 2022-February 2023, Schwartz and others conspired to sell meth around North Platte. During January 2023, Schwartz and other co-defendants were responsible for the sales of at least 106 grams of meth to a confidential informant.

Schwartz was directly involved in two sales in January 2023, which involved at least 70 grams of actual meth. During the first sale, the informant set up a purchase with Schwartz. Law enforcement provided the informant with $600 to buy an ounce of meth at a pre-arranged location. Schwartz handed over the money in exchange for a baggie containing 22 grams of meth.

Lehr said the same informant set up a second buy, this time with $1,200 for two ounces of meth. They met at a pre-determined location and Schwartz sold the informant a baggie containing at least 48 grams of meth.

This case was investigated by the Tri-City Drug Enforcement Team (TRIDENT), a task force of law officers from the Adams County Sheriff’s Office, Buffalo County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Grand Island police, Hall County Sheriff’s Office, Hastings police, Homeland Security Investigations, Kearney police, and the Nebraska State Patrol, Lehr said.

Henry was arrested 11 times in North Platte between December 2018-January 2024, according to the Bulletin’s archives.

His most recent arrest was on Jan. 23, when he was one of 29 suspected drug dealers across Nebraska who were busted in a coordinated sweep by law officers.  

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