Man sentenced in heroin trafficking case

A Norteño gang member who rammed a SWAT vehicle during a heroin trafficking sting in Vancouver’s Rose Village was sentenced Wednesday to 10 years in prison.

Jeffery D. Lewis, 29, of Goldendale pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court in two separate cases to possession of heroin and second-degree assault, possession of heroin with the intent to deliver and possession of a stolen firearm. He was arrested in October 2016 outside the S&S Mart at 3303 S St.

A confidential informant contacted Vancouver police about Lewis selling heroin in the city, in exchange for “favorable consideration on pending cases,” according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in the case. The informant, who is not identified in the affidavit, agreed to meet Lewis at the mini-mart to buy an ounce of heroin for $1,100.

Officers with the Vancouver Police Department’s Safe Streets Task Force and local SWAT team responded to the store at about 8:45 p.m. and saw a black Chevrolet Monte Carlo driven by Lewis pull into the parking lot. They tried to stop him, but Lewis backed the car into one of the SWAT vehicles, causing minor damage, court records state.

The four officers who were inside the vehicle were not injured, police said.

Lewis was taken into custody following a brief standoff.

During a search of the Monte Carlo, police said they found a stolen handgun, a quarter-ounce of methamphetamine and an ounce of heroin. Lewis had a warrant at the time for failing to appear in court in Grant County, court records show.

On Wednesday, Judge Derek Vanderwood sentenced Lewis to 120 months in prison, which included a firearm enhancement. 

Lewis told Vanderwood before the sentence was handed down that he wants to serve his time and be better. “I will try to do my best,” he said.