By Tracie Sullivan, For Iron County Today
A Cedar City man with a lengthy criminal history has been sentenced to five years to life in the Utah State Prison. His conviction followed two separate investigations into drug distribution.
Taylor Matthew Button, 28, has been sentenced to five years to life in the Utah State Prison after pleading guilty to a first-degree felony for distributing or arranging to distribute controlled substances. The sentence comes as part of a plea agreement that combined two cases against him.
Button was initially charged with distributing fentanyl and methamphetamine in one case and enticing a minor in another. As part of the agreement, the charges in the second case were dismissed. His sentence will be served concurrently, meaning he will serve both cases at the same time.
Distribution of Controlled Substances
According to court documents, officers obtained a search warrant for Button’s phone in January. Text messages revealed he had been arranging sales of fentanyl — often called “blues” — and methamphetamine. Investigators described him as a repeat offender with a history of drug distribution, sometimes depending on others to pick up the drugs.
“Agents could have charged distribution of several different drugs. Due to the amount he has been selling over the past month, he was charged for the one count above,” the affidavit stated.
Case Two: Enticing a Minor and Harmful Materials
In the second case, Button was arrested after he began communicating with an undercover agent posing as a 16-year-old girl on Facebook.
According to the affidavit filed in 5th District Court in support of his arrest, Button initiated the conversation, which quickly turned explicit. He sent the agent photos of his genitals and asked for nude images in return, making repeated sexual requests.
Button later moved the conversation to Snapchat, a platform known for disappearing messages, which agents believed he did to avoid detection. During the investigation, agents obtained a search warrant for Button’s home and vehicle, where they discovered a prescription for suboxone — a drug used to treat opioid addiction — along with illegal anabolic steroids, THC products, and drug paraphernalia.
“Agents located a prescription of suboxone with his name on it, since he was trying to sell it, we took it as evidence. We located an anabolic steroid that is not sold in the US and is illegal to possess a schedule 2 drug,” court documents state. “We located THC products and another substance in a vile that will need to be tested. In Taylors car we located a straw used for smoking drugs and other paraphernalia.”
Repeat Offender with a Lengthy Record
Button’s criminal record, which dates back to 2016, was a key factor in the prosecution’s decision to seek a prison sentence. Court documents show his history includes five prior offenses for distributing controlled substances, as well as charges for burglary and weapons violations.
Following Button’s sentencing, Iron County Attorney Chad Dotson called out the devastating impact of fentanyl in Utah and throughout the country.
“Fentanyl has become a deadly scourge across the nation, driving an unprecedented wave of overdose deaths and leaving devastation in its wake,” Dotson said. “In Utah, communities are facing the same crisis, as this powerful synthetic opioid continues to take lives, destroy families, and overwhelm first responders and treatment providers.”