BEAUMONT – A 2018 Mid-County traffic stop is going to cost one regional drug trafficker more than 20 years in jail.

According to U.S. Attorney Joseph D. Brown, authorities discovered 24 ounces of methamphetamine during an April 2018 Nederland traffic stop.

Authorities said the drugs had been supplied by Gary Allen Patterson.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Marcia A. Crone sentenced the 52-year-old Houston man to nearly 22 years in jail.

Patterson had pleaded guilty Feb. 2 to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, based in part on the Nederland traffic stop.

Brown said federal drug investigation information presented in court identified Patterson trafficking large quantities of methamphetamine in Jefferson County, Houston and Liberty County.

In October 2017, Patterson arranged two methamphetamine deals with an undercover agent and directed a co-defendant to meet with the agent and deliver the drugs.

Overall, authorities said Patterson was responsible for the possession with intent to distribute and distribution of more than a kilogram of methamphetamine.

Patterson was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 2, 2018.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle S. Englade and Michael Anderson prosecuted the case, which was investigated by DEA and ATF.