Johntay L. Johnson, a 40-year-old resident of Wausau, Wisconsin, has been sentenced to eight years in federal prison for maintaining a drug-involved premises, possessing a firearm as a convicted felon, and distributing cocaine. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley and will be followed by three years of supervised release. Johnson pleaded guilty to the charges on July 1, 2025.
Authorities began investigating Johnson in December 2023 after identifying him as a cocaine trafficker operating out of Wausau. Between January and July 2024, a confidential informant purchased two ounces of cocaine from Johnson on seven occasions; six of these transactions took place at his home.
On September 10, 2024, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Johnson’s residence. Officers found three firearms, cocaine, and marijuana in his bedroom and recovered a fourth firearm from another room. They also seized over $13,000 in cash along with digital scales and other drug paraphernalia. Two of the firearms had previously been reported stolen.
At the time of the search warrant execution, Johnson was arrested on an outstanding warrant related to an unrelated state case. He was charged in state court for the guns and drugs discovered at his home but released on cash bond two days later. While out on bond, he sold cocaine to a confidential informant twice more—once two weeks after his release and again in late November 2024.
During sentencing, Judge Conley commented that several factors aggravated Johnson’s conduct: “Johnson’s cocaine trafficking was aggravated by multiple factors, including his possession of multiple firearms, his quick return to drug dealing after being arrested in the middle of this investigation, and his lengthy criminal record that includes five prior convictions for cocaine trafficking.”
The investigation involved multiple agencies working together as part of the FBI’s Central Wisconsin Narcotics Task Force—including agents from the FBI itself as well as local law enforcement such as Wisconsin State Patrol; Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office; Marathon County Sheriff’s Office; Portage County Sheriff’s Office; Mountain Bay Police Department; Wausau Police Department; and Wisconsin National Guard Counter Drug Program. Additional support came from the ATF Madison Crime Gun Task Force—which consists of federal agents from ATF alongside task force officers from state and local agencies—and the Marathon County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven P. Anderson prosecuted the case.
Federal cases involving drugs and firearms are prosecuted under Operation Take Back America—a national initiative led by the Department of Justice that aims to eliminate cartels and transnational criminal organizations while protecting communities from violent crime through coordinated efforts like OCDETFs (Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
