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Man transporting illegal drugs to Burning Man sentenced to 34 months

Posted at 6:43 PM, May 06, 2019
and last updated 2019-05-06 20:57:31-04
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DENVER –  A New York man has been sentenced to 34 months in federal prison after being caught with a smorgasbord of drugs while heading to the 2018 Burning Man Festival in Nevada, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Colorado.

Court documents say 46-year-old Alexander Zelyakovsky, was caught on August 25, 2018, while driving a truck through Colorado heading to the festival in Nevada.

Zelyakovsky was pulled over by a Colorado State Patrol trooper for a traffic violation where he consented to a search of his truck. The trooper noticed the tailgate of the truck was particularly heavy and looked behind a factory panel where the drugs and several thousands of dollars were found.

He was caught with 1125 grams of Ecstasy, 376 grams of Psilocybin mushrooms, .0173 grams of LSD, 229 grams of cocaine, 331 grams of Ketamine and $26,745 in cash. Authorities say he intended to distribute the controlled substances at the festival and use the cash to purchase additional drugs for later distribution.

Zelyakovsky will also serve a three-year supervised release with the first six months in home detention.