FRESNO, Calif. — On Friday, The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the convictions of former Fresno deputy police chief Keith Foster for criminal conspiracies involving heroin and marijuana.
In November of 2017, a judge sentenced the 55-year-old to two 48 month terms to be served concurrently. The sentencing followed Foster's conviction on conspiracy to traffic heroin and marijuana, in which he appealed.
In a report from ABC30, Foster's attorney believes there wasn't enough evidence to bring the case to trial in the first place. He blamed federal agents, Foster's original attorney, and the Fresno Bee for his client's conviction. He also argued Foster was unfairly treated because he was Fresno's Deputy Police Chief when he committed the crimes.
The court found that Foster’s “phone calls and text messages with co-conspirators … sufficiently demonstrated Foster’s role in the conspiracy to distribute heroin.”
Foster discussed heroin types, prices and other details with a supplier.
The court also found that Foster’s calls with his nephew “sufficiently established his role in the conspiracy to distribute marijuana.” When Foster’s nephew was arrested with 6 pounds of marijuana in the trunk of his car, Foster said that he could have provided “cover” for him if he had been asked, and he also said that he would see what his “narc guys” could do for the nephew.
