LAKE HAVASU CITY – A young Lake Havasu City couple arrested together in a drug bust have both been sentenced to the Arizona Department of Corrections for four years. Reina Caldera, 19, was sentenced on December 22, while the same punishment was ordered on December 8 for Jase Scheer, 21.
A police report said it was an investigation of Scheer’s suspected drug sales in the community that led to an October 17 search of the apartment they shared in the 2100 block of Palo Verde Boulevard N. Officers reportedly seized about 11.3 ounces of methamphetamine, about one-quarter ounce of cocaine, more than 50 pills and scales used to weigh drugs.
Scheer denied drug dealing when interviewed while Caldera also told investigators that Scheer was not involved and that she was the dealer, according to the police report. The defendants entered separate plea agreements convicting them of possession of dangerous drugs for sale.
Defense attorney Ross Carponelli said substance abuse and financial instability clouded Caldera’s judgement.
“I apologize,” the teen told Judge Billy Sipe. “I want to move forward in a positive way. I want to turn my life around.”
Judge Sipe said 317 grams was a considerable amount of methamphetamine, let alone the other drugs that were confiscated. That the drugs were likely to be sold locally, as opposed to transported for distribution elsewhere, was another consideration.
That Caldera completed a juvenile recovery court program in October, 2024 and was arrested a year later in a new drug case was another factor Sipe cited in rejecting probation. The Court ultimately decided that identical punishment was appropriate for the similarly situated defendants.
