by Travis Mateer

Dear Traffickers,

My name is Travis and I would like to welcome you to our vast and beautiful state. As you’re looking for new opportunities to stick that entrepreneurial spirit in, let me explain why the state of Montana is such a GREAT place for your various operations.

One important factor in ensuring op-sec for your revenue streams is UNDER resourcing local law enforcement. Then, when that’s established, make sure to bottleneck reports to a few key cogs, like this guy:

Through either being shitty at his job, or something else (according to the rumors), this dude will offer some degree of cover for your business activities. Included in his skillset is expertly handling outside media, like in the missing person case of Jermain Charlo.

Another thing to consider when moving product or people across state-lines is identifying friendly places that border our neighbors, like Mineral County in the western part of our state. If you don’t want the Feds becoming aware of your black market supply chain logistics, Sheriffs like this one might be helpful:

Moving on from the criminal justice angle of why Montana is a great state for traffickers, let’s take a look at local talent.

I scanned the jail roster recently and got an updated mug shot of a real POS I knew from my Poverello days, John Skinner. If you go to the link you’ll see two mug shots with a heavy Charles Manson vibe, along with my reports on my direct interactions with John in which he HAD POSSESSION of meth and told me he was getting supplied by out-of-state sources.

The cop I talked to on the drug task force didn’t think John was a significant player on the drug scene, so I guess he didn’t warrant their attention. Yet for some reason that seemed to change a few days after I wrote about Skinner’s silly meth shenanigans and possible connection to all those fires happening at the Reserve Street camps last summer.

Here’s John Skinner now, looking much healthier and happier:

See that smile? That’s the smile of CONfidence our local talent on the streets can provide traffickers looking to get into business in the BIG SKY.

Now, sometimes sad things happen that might straddle the edge of COULD BE a trafficking situation (human trafficking) and NO, DEFINITELY SHE DROWNED IN THE WATER NOTHING TO SEE HERE!!!

In these cases it’s good to have a “non-profit” around to train indoctrinate people so that they can think they know what IS a possible case of human trafficking, and what IS NOT.

I experienced how helpful this can be to would-be human traffickers in the most unlikely of places: a small, private gathering on the Clark Fork river to lay a wreath in the flowing currents for Rebekah Barsotti.

You see, I was in the middle of listing the various organizations and institutions that I think are strategically worthless when it counts when I got sudden pushback about my depiction of the LifeGuard Group from two people who attended one of their trainings. And, because of this training, they told me that NO! Rebekah’s case couldn’t have been trafficking related.

But here’s the problem: I was actually out on the river yesterday, where Rebekah is alleged to have entered the river to save her struggling dog, and I have a VERY difficult time believing Rebekah’s disappearance is drowning related.

For a quick, on the scene report, here I am:

Being out near the water that supposedly claimed Rebekah’s life is a much different experience than listening to this guy go ON and ON about the intense water feature just out of sight over my right shoulder.

Yes, I am referring to Captain Bill Burt–a candidate for Justice of the Peace–as a “liquid” expert because saying “water” just doesn’t encompass Bill’s liquid experiences, like when he got a little too liquified in Butte with his cousin, broke into a hospital, and got busted by his own police peers:

Butte police officer Bill Burt apologized to the sheriff’s department, his family and the county police commission for getting drunk and breaking into an Uptown building earlier this year, blaming the event on his inability to handle alcohol.

“ I would not have been in the situation I was in that night — risking my whole career and my marriage — if I had not been drinking,” Burt said during an emotional 3 1/ sub 2-hour hearing before the Butte-Silver Bow Law Enforcement Commission Wednesday. “ It would not have happened.”

Burt pleaded guilty in September to criminal mischief and criminal trespass, admitting he broke a ground-level win dow on the old St. James Hospital building, 225 S. Idaho St., at 3:30 a.m. Aug. 17 and went inside. His cousin, Teri Rosgaard, was with him and was also charged.

To fully understand how far Burt’s expertise goes, one must understand how he transformed from begging a police commission for leniency, to something quite a bit different. I think traffickers might appreciate the fluid morals this kind of transformation hints at.

First, the begging (emphasis mine):

“The crux of the situation comes down to this is not just an issue involving alcohol. For whatever reason, this was a deliberate act to break into a building,” Walsh testified. “It just destroys the trust of law enforcement in the community.”

But Burt believes being fired over a nonviolent offense is too harsh a punishment. He conceded he damaged Butte’s trust in him as a police officer, but asked for a chance to make amends.

Then, the something different, and by something different I mean Bill Burt telling a waitress to KEEP SERVING ALCOHOL to one of his colleagues, who he was apparently “monitoring”. You can’t make this shit up, and to prove it I actually paid TWO DOLLARS to get the access to the articles I’m quoting because this shit is THAT good.

So here’s more from a link you can’t access because it’s behind a paywall:

According to Pavalone’s complaint, Capt. Bill Burt, who was in the brewery ostensibly to have dinner, told a waitress he was monitoring Pavalone and Smith’s table and that “they were in trouble.”

The complaint states the waitress asked Burt if she should stop serving the women alcohol, but Burt directed her to continue doing so. The complaint also states Burt was acting suspiciously throughout the evening, walking around the dining room and making multiple phone calls.

When Pavalone and her friends left the brewery in separate cars, Burt allegedly followed Smith down the hill to a gas station and convenience store, then directed a deputy to stop her for suspicion of DUI and driving on a probationary license.

The true allure, though, for traffickers looking to take advantage of what Montana has to offer is the possible cover of the billionaire class and their access to fancy toys, like private jets and helicopters.

I’m looking at you Mike TWO BEAR AIR Goguen. I mean, BATMAN!

Yes, the billionaires, wanna be billionaires, and merc types who cozy up to them (or an occasional Zinke, perhaps seen shirtless on a speed boat) are all factors that combine to make Montana a FANTASTIC place to consider setting up shop.

I mean, who is going to complicate your plans with the slightest degree of scrutiny? This guy?

Nah, don’t worry about him. Only six people donated to his GoFundMe page, so I think your presence will be well managed by controllable people.

Like who, you ask? Well, people who can act as a chaplain for Missoula’s Sheriff’s Department AND the head honcho at the anti-trafficking non-profit, the LifeGuard Group. I wonder if that guy thinks that’s funny?

I think I’ve made my case, so thanks for reading–and, if you’re a trafficker, hopefully bringing your trafficking jobs to our valley so the poors can get a good side-gig to cover rent.

Have a great week, Missoula!