Billings, Montana – A Billings man described by authorities as a main figure in a drug trafficking organization has been sentenced to more than 14 years in federal prison for his involvement in distributing illegal drugs.
Raymond Eugene Best, Jr., 44, was sentenced Thursday to 14 years and two months in prison. He will also serve 10 years of supervised release after completing his prison term, Acting U.S. Attorney Mark Steger Smith announced.
Best pleaded guilty in May 2026 to one count of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. U.S. District Judge Susan P. Watters presided over the case.
According to court documents, the investigation began in 2023 as law enforcement examined a drug trafficking organization based in Mexico. Authorities alleged that the organization transported illegal drugs into several states, including Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota and California. Billings was among the communities where drugs were being distributed.
Investigators said the organization, which included Best, was involved with methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl.
Investigation focuses on drug distribution in Billings
On June 12, 2023, the Billings Police Department received information from a source who described Best as the “main man” in Billings. According to authorities, the source claimed Best was bringing between 50 and 100 pounds of methamphetamine into the area, along with tens of thousands of fentanyl pills.
Best was described as someone who did not use the drugs himself but instead dealt them and kept supplies at other people’s homes. Investigators said another source later provided further information about Best’s alleged drug distribution activities.
Later that month, police learned about an apartment belonging to Stephanie Marie Nava, another member of the trafficking organization. Authorities alleged the apartment was being used to store drugs for Best.
Officers obtained a search warrant and searched the apartment, where they discovered seven grams of fentanyl pills and 16.7 grams of methamphetamine in a back bedroom.
Nava, 38, was later prosecuted on drug trafficking charges and was sentenced in January 2026 to five years in federal prison.
The investigation continued in August 2023, when authorities searched the Billings hotel room of another co-conspirator. Nearly three pounds of methamphetamine were discovered there.
Investigators determined that the shipment had originally contained eight pounds of methamphetamine, but much of it had already been distributed to other people. Authorities said Best and Nava were in Mexico at the time but coordinated the redistribution of the original eight-pound quantity.
A separate search of another residence resulted in authorities finding an additional eight ounces of methamphetamine.
Investigators also examined phone messages and other electronic communications that they said demonstrated Best’s continued involvement in methamphetamine and cocaine distribution during 2023. Nava was also sending messages through the same Facebook account.
Among the messages were “Are you ready for another pound yet?” and “Cause you almost paid off.”
Best had previously been convicted in federal court of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. That conviction came in 2012, when he received a prison sentence of more than 13 years.
At the time he committed the latest drug offenses, Best was still serving a term of federal supervised release from his previous case.
Best eventually fled the United States and was apprehended in Mexico. The Drug Enforcement Administration and U.S. Marshals Service worked closely with Mexican authorities to locate and capture him.
Following his apprehension, Best was returned to the United States to face prosecution for his role in the drug trafficking operation.
His guilty plea in May ultimately resulted in Thursday’s sentence of 14 years and two months in federal prison, followed by a decade of supervised release.
