Fentanyl bust in West Plains

Authorities seized over 170 grams of narcotics from a West Plains residence. Jacob Biggerstaff, 52, of West Plains, faces six felony charges after police searched his home on Oct. 28. 

According to court documents, the South Central Drug Task Force, Howell County Sheriff’s Department, and West Plains Police Department served a search warrant on the house, obtained “based on reliable information illegal narcotics were present.”

Inside the house in the 400 block of Walnut Street, they found 123.5 grams of methamphetamine, 49 grams of fentanyl, and one gram of cocaine. The probable cause statement notes the fentanyl was in the form of more than 350 individual capsules, posing “an extreme danger to the community at large.”

In an interview with police, Biggerstaff admitted to knowingly possessing the narcotics. On Monday, Oct. 30, the Howell County Prosecutor's Office charged him with two counts of second-degree drug trafficking, three counts of delivery of a controlled substance, and one count of maintaining a public nuisance. 

Court documents note Biggerstaff’s extensive criminal history, including drug charges dating back to 2014. He has been charged with two nuisance violations of abandoned vehicles and debris in 2023, as well as a bound-over weapons charge, and a separate case for resisting arrest during a traffic stop. 

The defendant has remained in custody since his arrest on Oct. 28 on a bond of $100,000. This matter is set for a case review on Nov. 6 after press time.