Naknek Man Indicted on Drug Charges

 ANCHORAGE – A federal grand jury in Anchorage returned an indictment yesterday charging a Naknek, Alaska, man for possession and attempted possession of methamphetamine and heroin.

According to court documents, Kenneth Bruce Bishop, 61, arranged for an associate to fly from Anchorage to King Salmon, Alaska, with approximately 170 grams of methamphetamine and approximately 50 grams of heroin. Staff of a regional air carrier at Merrill Field Airport detected the illegal drugs during a routine screening on July 29, 2021, and the Anchorage Airport Interdiction Team intercepted the drugs.

On August 3, law enforcement conducted a controlled delivery of the illegal drugs via the U.S. Postal Service in King Salmon. After Bishop picked up the package at the local post office and drove away, Alaska State Troopers pulled him over and found the contents of the package on the floor of the truck. The seized narcotics have an estimated street value of $220,000 and included approximately 50 user doses of heroin and more than 1,700 user doses of methamphetamine.

Bishop is scheduled for his initial court appearance on August 23 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew M. Scoble of the U.S. District Court of Alaska. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting U.S. Attorney Bryan Wilson of the District of Alaska and Colonel Bryan Barlow, Director of the Alaska State Troopers made the announcement.

The Alaska State Troopers, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Anchorage Airport Interdiction Team, Alaska Wildlife Troopers and the Bristol Bay Police Department are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Yunah Chung is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.