A member of an organization that distributed methamphetamine in Altoona was sentenced Monday to a maximum of 15 years in a state correctional institution by Blair County Judge Timothy M. Sullivan.

The case of William Howard Snyder II was among hundreds listed for review this week as the Blair County Court is in the initial stages of working its way through the backlog of cases that remain from the pause in court activity because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Snyder, 38, entered guilty pleas before Sullivan that were outlined in two sets of indictments.

One set of charges stemmed from Snyder’s involvement with a Philadelphia-based drug organization that was broken up in early 2020 when Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, through his Bureau of Narcotics Investigation and Drug Control, issued arrest warrants for 32 suspects.

Shapiro at the time estimated that the organization was bringing up to 10 pounds of meth into Altoona every seven to 10 days and that over a year’s time, the group had taken in $2.5 million from its sales of the drug.

During the drug sweep, the attorney general said the group was believed to have sold about 94,000 doses of meth over a year’s period at prices between $20 and $25 a dose.

He was quoted as saying, “This is an area (Altoona) that’s been impacted by opioids, fentanyl, heroin and now meth. This is a community that deserves better.”

The second set of charges against Snyder were filed after police served the initial arrest warrant.

According to the affidavit of probable cause on Feb. 6, 2020, officers went to Snyder’s home on the 1000 block of Third Avenue to take him into custody.

Inside the home they found marijuana, bundles of heroin and doses of methamphetamine.

Overall, Snyder was charged with six counts of possession with intent to deliver; conspiracy with Altoona residents Khalil Graham and Elroy Wise, who provided him with the meth that he sold; criminal use of a communication device; being an employee of a corrupt organization; possession of a small amount of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

On the first set of charges, Sullivan sentenced Snyder to a term of six to 15 years behind bars. The judge imposed a concurrent term of five to 15 years on the second set of charges.

Snyder was represented by Cambria County attorney Russell Heiple, who said in court documents that his client was a “footnote” to the drug organization.

No other alleged member of the group entered pleas on Monday.

Court Administrator Janice Meadows said that the county is working on the many cases that were delayed by the pandemic.

She estimated up to 100 pleas were entered Monday.

Many of the other cases were reviewed, indicating they wanted jury trials, but Meadows said, many bench warrants were issued for those who didn’t appear for the review.

Juries will be selected next week, she said.