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Drug dealer could get life in prison as jury returns guilty verdict By DANI DODGE Mail Tribune In just over an hour of deliberation, a 12-person federal jury found Santiago Munoz-Munoz guilty of drug trafficking on Thursday. The jury also decided that the $58,461 seized from his home and car were drug profits that must be forfeited to the government. "It was mostly circumstantial evidence, but there was mountains of the stuff," said juror John Kay, a retired data processing manager. "There was the money and also the fact that he couldn't show any visible means of support." The Medford man's trial began Tuesday in Medford before U.S. District Court Judge Ann L. Aiken. Attorneys gave closing arguments late Wednesday. The jury began deliberations Thursday morning and was unanimous in its verdict. Munoz-Munoz, 28, was found guilty on two counts: possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute 50 grams or more, and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Munoz-Munoz will be sentenced on Feb. 14. He faces a possible life sentence, but his attorney Laurance Parker said he expects Munoz-Munoz will get 20 years in prison. It was Munoz-Munoz's second drug-related conviction. The first - in state court - landed him in jail for 30 days. "Obviously, anyone looking at 20 years in the federal system is scared," Parker said. "Last time it was 30 days in county. ... Big difference." Munoz-Munoz did not testify in the trial. Assistant U.S. Attorney Doug Fong, who prosecuted the case, declined comment. Parker said he wasn't surprised by the verdict. A prosecution witness, who testified he'd made drug deals with Munoz-Munoz, appeared more credible on the stand than Parker had expected. The witness' words were backed up by phone records, Kay noted. "Even if you didn't believe (the witness), you knew something was going on because he was calling him so often," Kay said. When a search warrant was issued at Munoz-Munoz's home on Coker Butte Road in May officers found more than a pound of methamphetamine, a gun and the cash. Fingerprints and other evidence linked them to Munoz-Munoz. Kay also noted that Munoz-Munoz claimed to have made all the cash by working in the woods with his brother and fixing up old cars. But the jury didn't buy that. They didn't see evidence showing Munoz-Munoz made that amount of money from selling cars, and he didn't have the body of someone who had been doing manual labor, Kay said. "The defendant's brother was a witness for the defense - he was a wiry thing, leathery and hard as nails," Kay said. "The defendant was soft and pale and chubby." Kay pointed out that even a former employer of Munoz-Munoz noticed the defendant's appearance when he took the stand. "The guy said 'When he worked for me he was in shape,'" Kay said. "You could see he went through a major career change somewhere down the line." Reach reporter Dani Dodge at 776-4471, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.