Repeat Drug Trafficker Sentenced to 6 Years Publisher: U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Wisconsin Dateline: Madison, Wisconsin Date: 5 February 2026 Subjects: American Government , Crime

MADISON, WIS. – Chadwick M. Elgersma, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Edward L. Jackson, III, 29, Rothschild, Wisconsin, was sentenced January 8, 2026 by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 6 years in federal prison for possessing fentanyl and methamphetamine intended for distribution, and for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Jackson pleaded guilty to these charges on September 29, 2025.

On May 20, 2024, the Wausau Police Department was dispatched to a residence for reports of a domestic incident involving Jackson. A short time later, Jackson’s vehicle was located at a nearby residence. After a K9 alerted to the presence of narcotics in Jackson’s vehicle, his car was searched. During the search, police found a backpack belonging to Jackson containing 105 grams of methamphetamine, 247 pills containing fentanyl, and a loaded firearm.

Jackson is prohibited from legally possessing firearms due to prior felony convictions.

At sentencing, Judge Conley found that a substantial sentence was warranted because Jackson was a danger to the community due to his history of drug dealing and frequent possession of firearms.

The charges against Jackson were the result of an investigation conducted by the Marathon County Sheriff’s Office, the Wausau Police Department, the Mountain Bay Metro Police Department, and the FBI’s Central Wisconsin Narcotics Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Pfluger prosecuted this case. 

Updated February 5, 2026