Northern District of Iowa

Tyler Tinken, 37, from Dakota City, Iowa, pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, distribution of methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to more than 3 years in federal prison on December 7, 2020.

Evidence at showed that from July 2019 through November 14, 2019, Tinken was involved in a conspiracy that distributed methamphetamine in the Humboldt and Sac County areas. On multiple occasions in September and October 2019, Tinken distributed just over a pound of pure methamphetamine to individuals cooperating with law enforcement.  During a search of Tinken’s vehicle and residence in November 2019, law enforcement seized over 650 grams of pure methamphetamine that Tinken intended to distribute to others. 

Tinken was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Tinken was sentenced to 47 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Tinken was released on the bond previously set and is to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on a date yet to be set.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, Iowa, that consists of law enforcement personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration; Sioux City, Iowa, Police Department; Homeland Security Investigations; Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office; South Sioux City, Nebraska, Police Department; Nebraska State Patrol; Iowa National Guard; Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; United States Marshals Service; South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation; and Woodbury County Attorney’s Office. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-3059. 

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A man who called the Washington D.C. office of Congressman Jerrold Nadler and threatened the Congressman pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Kenneth Brown, from Waterloo, Iowa, was convicted of one count of transmitting a threatening communication.

At the plea hearing, Brown admitted that on December 18, 2019, he called the Washington D.C. office of Congress Nadler.  Brown admitted that he spoke with a staff assistant working in the office and threatened the Congressman.  Specifically, as charged in the indictment, Brown said “I will find someone to assassinate that piece of (expletive deleted) you work for.  Jerry Nadler is going to be assassinated.”  

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Brown remains in custody of the United States Marshal and will remain in custody pending sentencing.  Brown faces a possible maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Morfitt and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Waterloo Police Department, and the United States Capitol Police. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-2042.

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A man who sold narcotics out of his home near Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, was sentenced November 24, 2020, to more than four years in federal prison.

Virgil Lee Hubbard, age 40, from Dubuque, Iowa, received the prison term after a guilty plea to possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute near a protected location.  There was also a firearm found inside the residence.

At the guilty plea, Hubbard admitted he possessed at least five grams of pure ice methamphetamine with the intent to distribute or sell it.  He possessed the meth and a gun at a home located near Loras College.  This was not his first conviction for drug trafficking.  Hubbard was previously convicted of distributing heroin within 1,000 feet of a park in Iowa.

Hubbard was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court C.J. Williams.  Hubbard was sentenced to 57 months’ imprisonment and fined $100.  He must also serve an 8-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Hubbard is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Liz Dupuich and investigated by the Dubuque Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-1004.

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A convicted felon who robbed a bank five days after committing an armed robbery of a convenience store was sentenced on November 12, 2020, to 13 years in federal prison.  Lucas Raymond Thompson, age 36, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after a July 2, 2020 guilty plea to one count of bank robbery.

Information from a plea agreement and the sentencing hearing showed that Thompson robbed a Waterloo bank of $1,589 on October 25, 2018.  Thompson was wearing a tight black hoodie over his face and sunglasses with blue lenses.  He was carrying a cloth bag.  Thompson demanded that a teller put money in the bag and, when the teller was not doing so fast enough for Thompson, grabbed at something under his jacket and said, “don’t make me pull it out.”  The teller believed Thompson had a gun.  Thompson then escaped in a truck driven by another person.  Later in the day, an employee of a store near the bank saw the same truck and followed it through Waterloo.  The employee relayed the truck’s license plate to law enforcement, and law enforcement later arrested Thompson.

Before his federal prosecution, Thompson was convicted in state court for committing an armed robbery of a convenience store in Waterloo on October 20, 2020, just five days before the bank robbery.  In that case, Thompson pointed a firearm at the clerk’s head.  Thompson was sentenced to at least seven years’ imprisonment in state court for the convenience store robbery.

Thompson has an extensive criminal history, including eight prior convictions for burglary and two prior convictions for robbery.  At the time Thompson robbed the bank, he was on parole or probation in five different cases.  He was paroled from an Iowa state prison less than three months before he robbed the convenience store and the bank.

Thompson was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Thompson was sentenced to 156 months’ imprisonment for the bank robbery, to run consecutively to Thompson’s seven year sentence in state court for the robbery of the convenience store.  He was ordered to make $1,589 in restitution to the bank.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the federal prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Thompson is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Waterloo Police Department. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-2010.

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A podiatrist who wrote fraudulent hydrocodone prescriptions to acquaintances so that they would fill the prescriptions and give him pills was sentenced on November 6, 2020.  Steven Walter Beevers, age 58, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was sentenced after pleading guilty to one count of acquiring a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, deception, and subterfuge.  

Beevers was a Doctor of Podiatric Medicine who owned Podiatry Associates PC, which had locations in Delaware, Jones, and Linn Counties, Iowa.  In a plea agreement, Beevers admitted he wrote over 100 false, fictitious, and fraudulent prescriptions for hydrocodone between January 2016 and December 2018 to four acquaintances, including an employee and a neighbor.  Beevers used his State of Iowa Board of Podiatry license to write the phony prescriptions on the false pretense that the hydrocodone was necessary for his acquaintances’ medical conditions.  The acquaintances then filled the prescriptions, with health insurance paying for the costs except for co-pays that Beevers offered to cover, and then gave some or all of the hydrocodone to Beevers.  Beevers made false statements about his conduct to the Iowa Board of Podiatry investigators after his scheme was discovered.

Beevers was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Beevers was sentenced to five years of probation, including six months of home confinement, and 100 hours of community service.  He must also pay a $20,000 fine.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Manchester Police Department.  Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 20-CR-36.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A Sioux City man who conspired to rig environmental testing at a large Iowa regional wastewater treatment plant was sentenced today.

Patrick James Schwarte, age 71, from Sioux City, Iowa, received the sentence after a January 23, 2019, guilty plea to one count of conspiracy and one count of knowingly falsifying, tampering with, and rendering inaccurate a monitoring device or method required to be maintained under the Clean Water Act.

The evidence at the guilty plea and sentencing hearings showed that Schwarte was employed at the Sioux City Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) for over 30 years, most recently as shift supervisor.  Schwarte maintained a wastewater treatment certification from the State of Iowa’s Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) and possessed extensive training and experience in municipal wastewater treatment.

The WWTP is a large regional sewage treatment plant for wastewater from industrial, commercial, and residential sources throughout Siouxland, including Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, South Sioux City, Nebraska, North Sioux City, South Dakota, and Dakota Dunes, South Dakota.  The WWTP’s more than 20 industrial users produce a large volume of high-strength wastewater.  Under a Clean Water Act (CWA) permit, the WWTP was required to treat wastewater before discharging it into the Missouri River, which has heavy local recreational use.  Between March 15 and November 15 each year, when public use of the Missouri River was at its highest levels, the WWTP was also required to disinfect its wastewater to remove potentially dangerous human pathogens, including fecal coliform bacteria or E. coli.

The WWTP treated its wastewater with liquid chlorine, which kills bacteria but is potentially toxic to aquatic life.  The WWTP’s permit required WWTP to periodically test its wastewater not only for the presence of fecal coliform bacteria or E. coli, but also total residual chlorine (TRC) levels, to ensure that the Missouri River was not polluted.           

From July 2012 through June 2015, Schwarte and his direct supervisor, the WWTP Superintendent, tampered with the monitoring methods at the WWTP in order to ensure the WWTP would pass all of its tests.  Specifically, early in the morning on testing days for bacteria, Schwarte and the Superintendent instructed first-shift operators at the WWTP to increase the rate of liquid chlorine supplied to the wastewater.  After an hour or two passed, and an artificially high level of chlorine was fully mixed into wastewater, they ordered the WWTP’s first-shift operators to use hand-held colorimeters to gauge the levels of chlorine.  Only when the colorimeter “maxed out” would the Superintendent take a sample for fecal coliform bacteria or E. coli.  This fraudulent procedure allowed for the chlorine in the wastewater to reach sufficient concentrations to avoid showing elevated levels of fecal coliform bacteria or E. coli, which would violate the WWTP’s CWA permits.  The WWTP never reported any exceedances of its CWA permit limits for bacteria or residual chlorine after July 2012.

The liquid chlorine rate was increased from about 2.5 gallons per hour, to somewhere between 70 to 120 gallons per hour, for up to two hours.  On non-testing days, WWTP employees maintained the chlorine feed rate at minimal levels, well below the designed feed rate of the WWTP and at a rate clearly insufficient to ensure the WWTP consistently and adequately disinfected its wastewater, as the WWTP’s CWA permits required.  The engineering firm that designed the liquid chlorine feed system at the WWTP estimated that approximately 16.7 gallons of chlorine would need to be fed per hour to properly kill bacteria.

Then, in the afternoon on fecal coliform bacteria or E. coli testing days, well after the high amounts of chlorine had dissipated from the WWTP’s chlorine contact basin, and when an insufficiently low rate of liquid chlorine was supplied to the basin, Schwarte and the Superintendent would test again for TRC.  In the afternoon, they were certain the TRC would pass, because only a minimal rate of liquid chlorine was supplied to the chlorine contact basin at that time.  Again, this minimal rate was clearly insufficient to ensure the WWTP consistently and adequately disinfected its wastewater, as required.

The WWTP was also not operated or maintained in good working order, which also violated the WWTP’s permit.  For example, the WWTP’s computer system was not only insufficiently connected and inadequately programmed to work with the various parts of the WWTP, but also it worked only intermittently.  Although the WWTP was designed to have two operational chlorine contact basins, for years the City operated the WWTP with only one operational chlorine contact basin.  Because both chlorine contact basin gates were “old and very leaky,” as reflected in an engineering report provided to the City in April 2012, wastewater constantly poured into the “offline” chlorine contact basin and later, out of the “offline” chlorine contact basin and into the Missouri River.

Schwarte was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Schwarte was sentenced to two years of probation, including two months of home confinement, and fined $5,000. 

“Patrick Schwarte intentionally cheated on environmental tests, knowing he was violating the Sioux City Wastewater Treatment Plant’s environmental permit and polluting the Missouri River,” said United States Attorney Peter E. Deegan, Jr.  “By doing so, he put recreational users at risk and endangered the river’s aquatic life.  This blatant disregard for the law and reprehensible treatment of one of our nation’s treasured waterways was nothing short of outrageous.”

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Timothy L. Vavricek and Matthew J. Cole and investigated by the Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigation Division, the Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-4001.

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A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine while also illegally possessing a firearm was sentenced November 3, 2020, to 10 years in federal prison.

John Sanchez, 40, from Carroll, Iowa, received the prison term after a June 19, 2020, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of firearm by a prohibited person.

At the plea hearing, evidence showed that Sanchez was involved in a conspiracy that distributed methamphetamine from May 2019 through August 2019 in the Carroll, Iowa area.  On two occasions in July 2019, Sanchez distributed over 25 grams of pure methamphetamine to another individual.  Further, in August 2019, law enforcement seized over 50 grams of pure methamphetamine from Sanchez.  Sanchez later admitted he illegally owned a 9mm pistol.  Sanchez was not legally permitted to own a gun for three reasons: he had been convicted of a felony; he was a user of illegal drugs at the time he possessed the gun; and he was previously convicted of a misdemeanor crime domestic violence.

Sanchez was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Sanchez was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Sanchez is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood and investigated by Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, Carroll Police Department, United States Postal Inspection Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Iowa Division of Criminalistics Investigation. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-3005.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine was sentenced November 5, 2020, to 20 years in federal prison.

Michael Allison, 54, from Phoenix, Arizona, received the prison term after a May 18, 2020, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.  Allison was previously convicted of importation of marijuana in 1997 and 2005, both in the United States District Court, Southern District of California

Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings showed Allison was involved in a conspiracy from 2009 through about April 2010 that distributed more than 500 grams of pure methamphetamine. Evidence further showed that Allison along with several others were involved in a scheme that transported methamphetamine from Mexico to California to Iowa for further distribution. 

Allison was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Linda Reade.  Allison was sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Allison is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Clear Lake Police Department, North Central Iowa Drug Task Force, and the Iowa Laboratory of Criminalistics Investigation. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 11-3017.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A man who distributed videos online depicting the sexual abuse of children, including one in which a male teenager was lying face down and sexually assaulted, was sentenced November 5, 2020, to more than twenty years in federal prison.

Kelby Fowler, age 31, from Traer, Iowa, received the prison term after a pleading guilty to distribution and possession of child pornography.

At the guilty plea, Fowler admitted he distributed and possessed child pornography, including a depiction of a minor who had not yet attained 12 years of age.  Fowler possessed multiple videos showing children being sexually assaulted or raped.  In an interview with law enforcement, Fowler also admitted to previously sexually assaulting a young child for whom he babysat.

Fowler was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Fowler was sentenced to 252 months’ imprisonment and fined $200.  He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term and register as a sex offender.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab “resources.”

Fowler is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Liz Dupuich and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-126-CJW.

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A man who sold cocaine and firearms, including a machinegun with an integrated silencer, to another drug dealer was sentenced today to serve thirty years in federal prison.

Raven Damien Meader Burkhow, age 26, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a January 17, 2020 guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, two counts of use and possession of a firearm during and in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, possession of a sawed-off shotgun in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, possession of machineguns, and possession of an unregistered pipe bomb.

Evidence at sentencing and prior hearings showed that Burkhow sold cocaine on five occasions to a confidential informant, who Burkhow knew to be a drug dealer.  After one such transaction, Burkhow offered to sell the informant a pipe bomb.  Burkhow also sold a gun without a serial number, otherwise known as a “ghost gun,” with a silencer and a machinegun with an integrated silencer to the informant.  Burkhow sold the cocaine and guns from the doorway of his apartment building located in downtown Cedar Rapids.  Law enforcement officers searched Burkhow’s apartment and seized twenty firearms, including machineguns, a sawed-off shotgun, and a pipe bomb.  They also found cocaine, thirteen silencers, and thousands of rounds of ammunition in his apartment.  Burkhow was also ordered to forfeit $177,720 in cash, six gold bars valued at approximately $5,522.50, firearms, and ammunition, which were seized in connection with the case.

Burkhow was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Burkhow was sentenced to 360 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Burkhow is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kyndra Lundquist and Richard Murphy and investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-59.

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A Kansas man transporting methamphetamine from Kansas to South Dakota was sentenced November 4, 2020 to more than 15 years in federal prison.

Billy Carter, age 45, from Tonganoxie, Kansas, received the prison term after a June 15, 2020, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

In a plea agreement, Carter admitted that he engaged in a conspiracy to sell large amounts of methamphetamine.  On July 29, 2019, Carter was stopped by law enforcement for speeding in Woodbury County.  After a K-9 detected the presence of drugs in the vehicle, law enforcement located 5 packages of methamphetamine, weighing a total of approximately 5 pounds, in the trunk of the car.  Carter has an extensive criminal history with a total of 38 prior convictions.  His prior convictions include several convictions for forgery and theft, as well as convictions for assault, aggravated escape from custody, and domestic assault.   

Carter was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Carter was sentenced to 188 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Carter is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ron Timmons and investigated by the Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, Iowa, that consists of law enforcement personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration; Sioux City, Iowa, Police Department; Homeland Security Investigations; Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office; South Sioux City, Nebraska, Police Department; Nebraska State Patrol; Iowa National Guard; Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; United States Marshals Service; South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation; and Woodbury County Attorney’s Office. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-4052.

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A man who sold methamphetamine out of his residence in Fairfax, Iowa, and also possessed firearms in connection with his drug trafficking was convicted by a jury on November 4, 2020, after a three day trial in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Jason Richard Corey, age 54, formerly from Fairfax, Iowa, was convicted of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, distribution of a controlled substance, two counts of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  The verdict was returned following just over an hour of jury deliberations.

The evidence at trial showed that Corey sold a quarter pound of methamphetamine to a confidential informant in August of 2019 at Corey’s home in Fairfax.  Shortly after the sale, Corey was in a car that was stopped and found to have more than 70 grams of meth inside.  The meth was hidden in the bottom of a disinfectant wipes container and a bag.  Law enforcement searched Corey’s home and found a half pound of methamphetamine.  Officers also found two guns in the house.  During an interview after the search, Corey admitted dealing more than 25 pounds of methamphetamine during 2019 and that one of his meth sources gave him the two firearms that Corey could use to protect himself.

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Corey remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Corey faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of a lifetime of imprisonment, a $10,250,000 fine, and at least 10 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Emily K. Nydle and was investigated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program of the United States Department of Justice through a cooperative effort of the Cedar Rapids Police Department, the Marion Police Department, the Hiawatha Police Department, the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Drug Enforcement Administration. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-cr-00029.

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A drug user and marijuana seller who shot a gun at fellow drug traffickers was sentenced November 4, 2020, to three years in federal prison.

Jacob Tyler Ray Foss, age 21, from Evansdale, Iowa, received the prison term after pleading guilty to being a drug user in possession of a firearm.

In his plea agreement, Foss admitted he was at his apartment when two men attempted to kick in the door.  Foss fired shots to scare the men off.  After the men left his door, Foss continued to fire at their car.  Foss also admitted that he possessed the firearm in connection with other offenses, including possession with intent to deliver marijuana.  Foss was also aware the firearm was stolen.

Foss was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Foss was sentenced to 36 months’ imprisonment and fined $1,000.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Foss is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Emily K. Nydle and was investigated by a Federal Task Force composed of the Waterloo Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms assisted by the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office and Cedar Falls Police Department.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-2008.

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A man who robbed a bank at gunpoint was sentenced on November 3, 2020, to more than nine years in federal prison.

Luis Angel Vega, age 28, from Austin, Minnesota, received the prison term after a June 18, 2020 guilty plea to bank robbery and using a firearm during a violent crime.

Information from a plea agreement and at sentencing showed that, on September 3, 2019, Vega robbed a bank in Lime Springs, Iowa.  Vega walked into the bank armed with a Colt .45 caliber pistol and wearing a balaclava.  Vega pointed the pistol at three bank employees and demanded that a teller fill a bag with cash in thirty seconds.  He then took $6,869 in cash from the bank.  Based on the description given by the bank employees and the fact that Vega drove his own truck to the robbery, law enforcement officers were able to locate and arrest Vega less than three hours after the robbery. 

Vega was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Vega was sentenced to 114 months’ imprisonment.  He was ordered to make $6,869 in restitution to the bank.  He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Vega is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kyndra Lundquist and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-2011.

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A Central City man who distributed over seven kilograms of meth from 2017 to 2018 was sentenced November 2, 2020, to more than 16 years in federal prison. 

Brian Jeffrie Padgett, age 42, from Central City, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 29, 2020 guilty plea to one count of distribution of a controlled substance near a protected location. 

In a plea agreement, Padgett admitted that on July 27, 2018, and again on August 10, 2018, he sold over 75 grams of methamphetamine to an individual within 1,000 feet of Central City Community School in Central City, Iowa.  On August 16, 2018, law enforcement conducted a search warrant at Padgett’s residence in Central City, where they recovered over 38 grams of methamphetamine, a loaded firearm, and drug packaging material.  Padgett admitted that he had two main sources of supply for methamphetamine.  Padgett received pounds of methamphetamine from these two sources over approximately six months. 

Padgett was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Padgett was sentenced to 198 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a ten-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Padgett is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison. 

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Dillan Edwards and investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-00016.

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A man who was a felon and drug user and hid a firearm outside his former girlfriend’s home in Waterloo was sentenced today to four years in federal prison.

Michael Deshone Holmes, age 31, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after a November 2, 2020 guilty plea to being a felon and drug user in possession of a firearm.

At the guilty plea, Holmes admitted he was convicted in 2009 of the felony offenses of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and using a firearm during and in relation to a felony drug offense in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa.  Holmes also admitted that on June 1, 2019, he was an unlawful user of marijuana and cocaine.  On that same day, Holmes went to his former girlfriend’s home in Waterloo and hid a firearm outside before he went inside to meet with her.  After he got into a dispute with her, Holmes fled the scene on foot.  Waterloo police officers found the gun, which had previously been reported stolen, and recovered Holmes DNA on the handgun. 

Holmes was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Holmes was sentenced to 48 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Holmes is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Reinert and was investigated by a Federal Task Force composed of the Waterloo Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms assisted by the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office and Cedar Falls Police Department.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-02005.

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A man who robbed a Sioux City business on September 11, 2019, was sentenced October 27, 2020, to more than 10 years in federal prison.

Noah Pineda, 21, from Sioux City, Iowa, received the prison term after a guilty plea to interference with commerce by robbery, using, carrying, and brandishing a short-barreled rifle during and in relation to the robbery, and possession of a firearm by a domestic abuse misdemeanant. 

Evidence presented by the United States at the detention, change of plea, and sentencing hearings revealed on September 11, 2019, Pineda entered Sarg’s Mini Mart convenience store wearing a hooded sweatshirt and a white mask.  Pineda displayed a shortened rifle, pointed it at the clerk, and demanded money from the cash registers and clerk’s purse.  Pineda grabbed the money out of both registers, took money from the clerk’s purse, and ran from the store. With the assistant of a police K9, Pineda was found hiding in nearby bushes and was arrested.  Pineda admitted to the robbery.  Pineda told officers he hid the gun, a loaded .22 caliber rifle, under a shed in the area where he was found hiding.  Pineda admitted the September 11, 2019, robbery was just one of a number of armed robberies he had committed.  Pineda has a long history of violence that started when he was 12 and includes convictions for domestic assault and domestic abuse assault causing bodily injury.   

Pineda was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Pineda was sentenced to 132 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 4-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from Project Guardian partners. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case was investigated by the Sioux City Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-4085.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A man who illegally possessed a gun was sentenced October 29, 2020, to six years in federal prison.

Cordaro Whitsel, age 31, from Sioux City, Iowa, received the prison term after a June 19, 2020, guilty plea to being a felon, drug user, and domestic abuse misdemeanant in possession of a firearm. 

Evidenced produced by the United States at the detention, change of plea, and sentencing hearings revealed that on November 16, 2019, at approximately 5:00 a.m., a person contacted the Sioux City Police Department and requested officers to come to her residence on Main Street in Sioux City right away because Cordaro Whitsel was there, on parole, unwelcome, and “irate.”  At the time, Whitsel had prior convictions for Forgery, Theft, Burglary, and Domestic Abuse Assault.  Officers arrived and found Whitsel outside the residence wearing a large camouflage backpack.  Whitsel removed the backpack and set it next to him on the porch.  Officers spoke with the 911 caller, who explained that she was assaulted by Whitsel during an argument while her children (ages 4 years, 2 years, and 4 months) were present in the residence.  The 911 caller had visible injuries that were consistent with her statements.  Whitsel was arrested.  A small baggie of methamphetamine was found lying on the porch where Whitsel was seated.  Inside the backpack, law enforcement found a loaded shotgun (one round in the chamber and 3 rounds in the magazine tube).  Officers subsequently located a ballistic vest in the basement where Whitsel had been prior to the assault.

Whitsel was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Whitsel was sentenced to 72 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Whitsel is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from our Project Guardian partners.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case was investigated by the Sioux City Police Department and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-4009.

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A Waterloo felon who unlawfully possessed a gun was sentenced today to 30 months in prison.

Dreyon Damondre Grant, age 27, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison sentence today following a plea to possession of a firearm by a felon.

Information disclosed at sentencing and at his plea hearing showed that in July 2019, Grant got into a dispute with another man at an apartment complex in Waterloo.  The other man accused Grant of stealing money from him and a friend.  When the victim confronted Grant, Grant came out of his apartment unit holding a knife and pointing it at the victim.  After the victim refused to leave, Grant called his friend to help scare the victim.  A short time later, Grant’s friend came over with a gun.  Grant tried to scare the victim away with the gun.  The victim called 911.  Police responded and located the gun Grant possessed.  No one was injured in the dispute.  Grant has a prior felony conviction for burglary.  He has also prior convictions for assault, including one conviction for assaulting a peace officer.    

Grant was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Grant was sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Corkery.  This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) through a cooperative effort of the Waterloo Police Department, Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigations Safe Streets Unit, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-2060.

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A man who repeatedly drove pounds of methamphetamine to the Midwest from a source in Las Vegas, Nevada, in 2019, was sentenced October 22, 2020, to more than 18 years in federal prison.

Daniel Decker, age 39, from Kenosha, Wisconsin, received the prison term after a guilty plea to one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

In a plea agreement, Decker admitted he drove through Cedar County, Iowa, with approximately five pounds of ice methamphetamine with the intent to redistribute it.  At sentencing, evidence showed that Decker had transported approximately twenty pounds of ice methamphetamine from Las Vegas to the Midwest over the course of a couple of months.

Decker was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Decker was sentenced to 220 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Decker is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Liz Dupuich and investigated by the Muscatine County drug task force. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-cr-0096.

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U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan wants to ensure that everyone knows how to rid their homes of unused and unwanted medications.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is holding its 19th National Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, October 24, at locations across the country.  The nationwide event aims to provide a safe, convenient, and responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs, while also educating the general public about the potential for abuse of medications.

“Many people don’t know how to properly clean out their medicine cabinets.  Failing to safely dispose of old medications, especially opioids, all too often leads to dangerous drugs ending up in the wrong hands,” said U.S. Attorney Deegan.  “The DEA is providing an important public service by providing an easy way to dispose of unneeded medications.  I encourage everyone to get rid of their old and unused prescription medicine in the proper way.  Doing so will make our communities safer.”

Rates of prescription drug abuse in the United States are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs.  Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.

Collection sites will adhere to local COVID-19 guidelines and regulations in order to maintain the safety of all participants and local law enforcement.

“The initiative – now in its tenth year – addresses a vital public safety and public health issue,” said DEA Acting Administrator Timothy Shea. “Medicines that languish in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse.  Together with our partners, we are not only holding National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, but offering other ways to dispose of unwanted, unused, and expired prescription medications.”

Given the ongoing COVID-19 public health emergency, DEA wants to ensure that the public is aware of other ways they can dispose of unwanted prescription drugs without having to leave their homes. Both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency have tips on how to safely dispose of drugs at home.

In addition to DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, prescription drugs can be disposed of at any of the 11,000 DEA authorized collectors at any time throughout the year. For more information, visit: https://apps2.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubdispsearch/spring/main?execution=e1s1.

DEA and its partners will collect tablets, capsules, patches, and other solid forms.  DEA will also accept vape pens or other e-cigarette devices from individual consumers, only after the batteries are removed from the devices.  If the battery cannot be removed, individual consumers can check with large electronic chain stores who may accept the vape pen or e-cigarette devices for proper disposal.  Liquids, including intravenous solutions, syringes and other sharps, and illegal drugs cannot be dropped off. 

This service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

For more information on DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, and to find a collection site near you, visit www.deatakeback.com.

Brenda Jensen, age 53, from Denison, Iowa, was convicted of credit union embezzlement.  Jensen pled guilty in federal court in Sioux City to embezzling nearly $1.5 million over several years.

In a plea agreement, Jensen admitted that from at least May 2012 to March 2018, she embezzled money from Consumer Credit Union (CCU) in Denison, Iowa while working there as an employee.  CCU serviced Crawford, Carrol, Shelby, Ida, Monona, Sac, and Harrison counties.

Jensen and at least one other employee embezzled a total of nearly $1.5 million.  Jensen, the credit union’s head teller, was responsible for all cash and cash counts at CCU during the relevant timeframe.  Jensen successfully concealed her crime from auditors and CCU for years.  Jensen was able to conceal the crime in numerous ways, including overstating the change fund in the credit union’s general ledger balance, and participating with at least one other employee in issuing and depositing fraudulent checks to cover up their ongoing theft.  Jensen further concealed the embezzlement by creating fictitious deposits into her personal accounts at CCU.  After years of embezzling, the employees changed their methods of concealment and developed another concealment scheme.  The new scheme caused CCU an additional $539,000 in losses.  CCU’s total cash loss caused an insolvency resulting in a forced merger with SAC Federal Credit Union.  CCU was insolvent with negative equity of approximately $481,206, and the value of its assets had decreased by over a million dollars.  The million dollar decrease was a direct loss from fraudulent activity.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Jensen remains free on bond pending sentencing.  Jensen faces a possible maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment, a $1,000,000 fine, and 5 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ron Timmons and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-4083.

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United States Attorney Peter Deegan announced today that Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Daniel Tvedt will lead the efforts of his office in connection with the Justice Department’s nationwide Election Day Program for the upcoming November 3, 2020, general election.  AUSA Tvedt has been appointed to serve as the District Election Officer (DEO) for the Northern District of Iowa, and in that capacity is responsible for overseeing the District’s handling of complaints of election fraud and voting rights concerns in consultation with Justice Department Headquarters in Washington.

United States Attorney Deegan said, “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination and to have that vote counted without it being stolen because of fraud.  The Department of Justice will always act appropriately to protect the integrity of the election process.”

The Department of Justice has an important role in deterring election fraud and discrimination at the polls, and combating these violations whenever and wherever they occur.  The Department’s long-standing Election Day Program furthers these goals, and also seeks to ensure public confidence in the integrity of the election process by providing local points of contact within the Department for the public to report possible election fraud and voting rights violations while the polls are open through election day.

Federal law protects against such crimes as intimidating or bribing voters, buying and selling votes, impersonating voters, altering vote tallies, stuffing ballot boxes, and marking ballots for voters against their wishes or without their input.  It also contains special protections for the rights of voters, and provides that they can vote free from acts that intimidate or harass them.  For example, actions of persons designed to interrupt or intimidate voters at polling places by questioning or challenging them, or by photographing or videotaping them, under the pretext that these are actions to uncover illegal voting may violate federal voting rights law.  Further, federal law protects the right of voters to mark their own ballot or to be assisted by a person of their choice, where voters need assistance because of disability or illiteracy.

The franchise is the cornerstone of American democracy.  We all must ensure that those who are entitled to the franchise exercise it if they choose, and that those who seek to corrupt it are brought to justice.  In order to respond to complaints of election fraud or voting rights concerns during the voting period that ends on November 3, 2020, and to ensure that such complaints are directed to the appropriate authorities, United States Attorney Deegan stated that AUSA/DEO Tvedt will be on duty in this District while the polls are open.  He can be reached by the public at telephone number 319-363-6333.

In addition, the FBI will have special agents available in each field office and resident agency throughout the country to receive allegations of election fraud and other election abuses on election day.  The local FBI field office can be reached by the public at 402-493-8688.

Complaints about possible violations of the federal voting rights laws can be made directly to the Civil Rights Division in Washington, DC by phone at 800-253-3931 or by complaint form at https://civilrights.justice.gov/.

Please note, however, in the case of a crime of violence or intimidation, please call 911 immediately and before contacting federal authorities.  State and local police have primary jurisdiction over polling places, and almost always have faster reaction capacity in an emergency.

United States Attorney Deegan said, “Ensuring free and fair elections depends in large part on the cooperation of the American electorate.  It is imperative that those who have specific information about discrimination or election fraud make that information available to my Office, the FBI, or the Civil Rights Division.”

A man who distributed methamphetamine pled guilty October 14, 2020, in federal court in Sioux City.

Silas Bui, 24, from Sioux City, Iowa, was convicted of distributing methamphetamine. 

At the plea hearing, Bui admitted that on July 8, 2019, he distributed 27.37 grams of methamphetamine to an individual cooperating with law enforcement. Bui was previously convicted of the following crimes: Harassment – 1st Degree and Domestic Abuse Assault Display or Use of a Weapon – 1st Offense, on or about September 12, 2018; Theft 2nd, on or about April 11, 2019; Possession of a Controlled Substance – 2nd Offense, on or about September 3, 2019, all in the Iowa District Court for Woodbury County.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Bui was taken into custody by the United States Marshal after the guilty plea and will remain in custody pending sentencing.  Bui faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of 40 years’ imprisonment, a $5,000,000 fine, and at least 4 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood and was investigated by Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, Iowa, that consists of law enforcement personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration; Sioux City, Iowa, Police Department; Homeland Security Investigations; Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office; South Sioux City, Nebraska, Police Department; Nebraska State Patrol; Iowa National Guard; Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; United States Marshals Service; South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation; and Woodbury County Attorney’s Office. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-4053.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A woman who drove over five kilograms of ice methamphetamine from Texas to Dubuque was sentenced today to more than six years in federal prison.

Veronica Marie Hinkle, age 34, from Dallas, Texas, received the prison term after a September 2, 2020 guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

Information disclosed at the sentencing hearing showed that in about June 2017, Hinkle was recruited by her boyfriend, Jose Roberto Vazquez, to drive one kilogram of ice methamphetamine from Dallas to deliver to Jeremy Kieffer in Dubuque.  Over the next six months, Hinkle made multiple similar trips to Dubuque, each time delivering at least a kilogram of ice methamphetamine to Kieffer and his associates.  In January 2018, Hinkle helped package nearly a kilogram of 98% pure methamphetamine for her co‑conspirators, but the package was intercepted by law enforcement in Iowa.  Kieffer and Vazquez were previously sentenced to 165 months’ imprisonment and 259 months’ imprisonment, respectively, for their roles in the conspiracy. 

Hinkle was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Hinkle was sentenced to 81 months’ imprisonment.  She must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Hinkle is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until she can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was investigated by the Dubuque Drug Task Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham and Special Assistant United States Attorney Drew Inman. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 18-CR-01027‑CJW‑MAR.

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A man who sold a fatal opioid cocktail was sentenced October 14, 2020, to 20 years in federal prison.

Carl Ravon Watkins, age 30, from Dubuque, Iowa, received the prison term after a June 17, 2020 guilty plea to one count of distribution of controlled substances resulting in death.

In a plea agreement, Watkins admitted that in August 2019, a woman called and texted him looking for heroin.  Watkins met with the woman and her boyfriend in on Wilson Avenue in Dubuque.  Watkins got into the woman’s car and sold her what was supposedly heroin.  The woman took the mixture home, used it later that night, and lost consciousness.  Her boyfriend found her hours later, unconscious and not breathing.  Emergency responders arrived, but were unable to revive the woman and she was pronounced dead.  An autopsy determined that the woman’s death was caused by mixed drug toxicity, specifically from fentanyl and an analogue of fentanyl called acetyl fentanyl.  During a search of the woman’s bedroom, officers found a chunky white substance that tested positive for fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl.

Watkins also admitted that the day after the woman’s death, the Dubuque Drug Task Force set up a controlled meeting with Watkins to attempt to purchase $80 of purported heroin from him.  When Watkins arrived at the location on Wilson Avenue in Dubuque, officers arrested him.  During his arrest, Wilson dropped a baggie containing about a quarter gram of fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl.

Watkins was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Watkins was sentenced to 240 months’ imprisonment.  He was ordered to make $7,233 in restitution to the victim’s family for funeral expenses.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Watkins is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was investigated by the Dubuque Drug Task Force and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-01043-CJW-MAR.

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U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan of the Northern District of Iowa and U.S. Attorney Marc Krickbaum of the Southern District of Iowa announced yesterday $661,955 in Department of Justice grants to the Iowa Department of Public Safety to fund crime laboratories, decrease DNA backlogs, support basic and applied forensic research, and help law enforcement identify missing persons. The grants, awarded by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs, are part of $192 million in funding to advance forensic science nationwide.

“Developments in forensic science have given investigators an extraordinary array of tools that can be enlisted to solve crimes and bring answers to victims and survivors, often after many years and even decades,” said OJP Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan. “These investments in crime- fighting technology, from DNA analysis to drug toxicology to forensic anthropology, will help identify and convict perpetrators, ensure justice for innocent victims and keep communities safe by deterring future criminal activity.”

“Our offices are committed to prosecuting dangerous and violent offenders,” said Deegan and Krickbaum.  “This investment in the Iowa Department of Public Safety will allow our state and local law enforcement partners to better investigate violent crime and bring justice to victims across the state.”

Since 2004, the Office of Justice Programs has received an annual appropriation for DNA and other forensic science activities. The funding, administered through OJP’s Bureau of Justice Assistance and National Institute of Justice, supports DNA analysis, laboratory capacity enhancement and forensic science research that provides knowledge and tools to improve the quality and practice of forensic science.

For a complete list of individual grant programs, award amounts, and more information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan of the Northern District of Iowa and U.S. Attorney Marc Krickbaum of the Southern District of Iowa today announced $661,955 in Department of Justice grants to the Iowa Department of Public Safety to fund crime laboratories, decrease DNA backlogs, support basic and applied forensic research, and help law enforcement identify missing persons. The grants, awarded by the Department’s Office of Justice Programs, are part of $192 million in funding to advance forensic science nationwide.

“Developments in forensic science have given investigators an extraordinary array of tools that can be enlisted to solve crimes and bring answers to victims and survivors, often after many years and even decades,” said OJP Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Katharine T. Sullivan. “These investments in crime-fighting technology, from DNA analysis to drug toxicology to forensic anthropology, will help identify and convict perpetrators, ensure justice for innocent victims and keep communities safe by deterring future criminal activity.”

“Our offices are committed to prosecuting dangerous and violent offenders,” said Deegan and Krickbaum.  “This investment in the Iowa Department of Public Safety will allow our state and local law enforcement partners to better investigate violent crime and bring justice to victims across the state.”

Since 2004, the Office of Justice Programs has received an annual appropriation for DNA and other forensic science activities. The funding, administered through OJP’s Bureau of Justice Assistance and National Institute of Justice, supports DNA analysis, laboratory capacity enhancement and forensic science research that provides knowledge and tools to improve the quality and practice of forensic science.

For a complete list of individual grant programs, award amounts, and more information about OJP and its components can be found at www.ojp.gov.

On October 9, 2020, Christopher Frerichs, 44, from Spencer, Iowa, plead guilty and was sentenced for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possessing a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.  Frerichs was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison.

Evidence at the hearing showed that between March 2019 and August 2019, Frerichs and others conspired to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine in the Iowa Great Lakes area.  On August 1, 2019, in Buena Vista County, Iowa, during a controlled drug buy operation, law enforcement seized approximately 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine and a loaded .45 caliber handgun from Frerichs.  Later on the same date, law enforcement seized another 1.5 pounds of methamphetamine from Frerichs’ residence near Worthington, Minnesota.  Evidence further showed that Frerichs obtained and distributed over 15 pounds of methamphetamine from the end of 2018 through 2019. During that time, Frerichs made at least three trips to his primary source of supply in Colorado, and one trip to another source of supply in Arizona.

Frerichs was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Frerichs was sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Frerichs is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Buena Vista County Sheriff’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Jackson County (MN) Sheriff’s Office, Emmet County Sheriff’s Office and DCI Criminalistics Laboratory.  Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 19-4061.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – Today, the Department of Justice announced it has charged more than 14,200 defendants with firearms-related crimes during Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, despite the challenges of COVID 19 and its impact on the criminal justice process. These cases have been a Department priority since November 2019 when Attorney General William P. Barr announced his commitment to investigating, prosecuting, and combatting gun crimes as a critical part of the Department’s anti-violent crime strategy. These firearms-related charges are the result of the critical law enforcement partnership between United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, led by Acting Director Regina Lombardo, who has made firearms-related investigations a priority.

“The number one priority of government is to keep its citizens safe,” said Attorney General Barr. “By preventing firearms from falling into the hands of individuals who are prohibited from having them, we can stop violent crime before it happens. Violating federal firearms laws is a serious crime and offenders face serious consequences.  The Department of Justice is committed to investigating and prosecuting individuals who illegally buy, sell, use, or possess firearms. Reducing gun violence requires a coordinated effort, and we could not have charged more than 14,000 individuals with firearms-related crimes without the hard work of the dedicated law enforcement professionals at the ATF, our U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the country, and especially all of our state and local law enforcement partners.”

“Protecting the public from violent crime involving firearms is at the core of ATF’s mission,” commented ATF Acting Director Regina Lombardo.  “Every day the men and women of ATF pursue and investigate those who use firearms to commit violent crimes in our communities, many of whom are prohibited from possessing firearms from previous convictions.  ATF, in collaboration with the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices across the nation, is committed to bringing these offenders to justice for their egregious and violent criminal acts.”

“Unlawful gun possession leads to violence.  And our office’s top priority is the safety of Iowa’s citizens,” said United States Attorney Peter Deegan.  “Our goal is to prevent gun violence by prosecuting those who unlawfully possess guns and ammunition -- including felons, drug users and domestic abusers.  We will also hold accountable anyone who knowingly buys a gun for someone who cannot lawfully possess one.”

Of the more than 14,200 cases charged, 164 cases have been brought by the Northern District of Iowa, announced U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan.

Under federal law, it is illegal to possess a firearm if you fall into one of nine prohibited categories including being a felon, illegal alien, or unlawful user of a controlled substance. Further, it is unlawful to possess a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense or violent crime.  It is also illegal to purchase – or even to attempt to illegally purchase - firearms if the buyer is a prohibited person or illegally purchasing a firearm on behalf of others. Lying on ATF Form 4473, which is used to lawfully purchase a firearm, is also a federal offense.  The Department is committed to prosecuting these firearms offenses as well as using all modern technologies available to law enforcement such as the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network, known as NIBIN, to promote gun crime intelligence. Keeping illegal firearms out of the hands of violent criminals will continue to be a priority of the Department of Justice and we will use all appropriate, available means to keep the law abiding people of this country safe from gun crime. 

For more information on the lawful purchasing of firearms, please see: https://www.atf.gov/qa-category/atf-form-4473.

A Monticello man who forged the signatures of a Cedar Rapids utility company’s customers as part of a $300,000 light bulb rebate form fraud scheme was sentenced today to nearly two years in federal prison.

Anthony John Harms, age 35, from Marion, Iowa, received the prison term after a March 9, 2020 guilty plea to one count of mail fraud.

At prior hearings, evidence showed that Dustin Hutcheson operated Hutch Energy, LLC, which was an energy-related services business in Marion, Iowa.  Hutcheson recruited Harms into the light bulb scheme.  In 2017 and 2018, Hutcheson and Harms approached small business customers of a Cedar Rapids utility company and offered to replace their existing lighting with more energy efficient LED lighting for free.  They falsely claimed they could do so at no cost to the customer because of a rebate program that the utility company offered.  They claimed all the customer needed to do was provide Hutcheson the paperwork, which he would complete.  They told the customer to send Hutcheson the rebate check once the customer received it from the utility company.  Hutcheson then submitted fraudulent invoices to the utility company, making it appear as if the customer had paid for the lighting and was entitled to a rebate.  Hutcheson and Harms repeatedly forged the signatures of the utility company’s customers and Hutcheson inflated the number of bulbs installed on the rebate forms.  Harms also repeatedly called the utility company’s customer service line and impersonated the customers in order to learn the status of rebate forms.  In total, Hutcheson and Harms received over $300,000 in rebate moneys as a result of the fraud scheme. 

Neither Hutcheson nor Harms was a licensed electrician.  As a result, they risked the safety of their customers and clientele.  In one case, Hutcheson’s light bulbs caused a fire in a nursing home, likely because the bulbs’ voltage was incorrect.  The nursing home had to evacuate 23 residents, including elderly individuals on feeding tubes and with dementia.

Harms was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  He was ordered to make over $340,000 in restitution to the utility company, including paying the utility company’s attorney fees in responding to the government’s investigation and prosecution.  Harms must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  In June 2020, Hutcheson was sentenced to 44 months’ imprisonment for his leadership role in the scheme.

As a result of having been caught using narcotics on multiple occasions while on pretrial release, Harms is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and investigated by the Linn County Sheriff’s Office and the United States Postal Inspection Service. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-106.

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A Sioux City man selling methamphetamine, cocaine, and heroin from his home was sentenced October 8, 2020 to more than 32 years in federal prison.

Monee Yodprasit, age 42, from Sioux City, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 18, 2020, guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. 

In a plea agreement, Yodprasit admitted that between June of 2019 and November 2019, he conspired to sell more than 50 grams of pure methamphetamine.  On November 7, 2019, after law enforcement intercepted over 9 pounds of methamphetamine on its way to Yodrapsit’s home, officers executed a search warrant on Yodprasit’s residence where they seized more than 2 pounds of cocaine, approximately 11 pounds of methamphetamine, approximately 55.8 grams of heroin, two loaded handguns in the vicinity of the drugs, and approximately $24,000 in cash.  Yodprasit’s criminal history includes a conviction from the United States District Court for South Dakota, Southern Division, Case No. 98-CR-40170-1, for conspiracy to possess a controlled substance, possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, and distribution of a controlled substance. In that case, between May 1998 and November 1998, Yodprasit and codefendant, were distributing drugs, including multiple pounds of methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana. Both carried firearms during drug buys; and Yodprasit owned at least three firearms, including an AK-47 and two handguns. Yodprasit and the codefendant repeatedly traveled to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and sold drugs out of hotel rooms.

Yodprasit was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Yodprasit was sentenced to 387 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 10-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

“Yodprasit was a major source of deadly methamphetamine in our community - but not anymore,” said United States Attorney Peter Deegan.  “Today’s sentence brings to justice an armed and dangerous predator who caused untold damage to so many, including those suffering from addiction, their families, and their loved ones.  Through the outstanding work of our tireless law enforcement partners he is done poisoning others and threatening our community and will spend the next 32 years behind bars.  I want to thank the DEA, the Postal Inspection Service, the Sioux City Police Department and all other members of the Tri-State Drug Task Force for continuing to take the fight to methamphetamine traffickers.  Today is a victory in our continuing battle against the plague of methamphetamine.”

DEA Omaha Division Special Agent in Charge Richard W. Salter Jr. stated, “The DEA is fully committed to the unrelenting support of our state, local and tribal law enforcement partners in holding the line between decent citizens and families and those who traffic drugs and firearms and have no regard for civility,” DEA Special Agent in Charge Richard Salter Jr., said. “This case represents what can be accomplished when law enforcement agencies and prosecutors combine and focus intelligence, technical and enforcement resources toward a common threat.  Our collective missions are to protect our communities and prevent illegal drugs and drug traffickers from stealing the futures of our citizens.”    

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ron Timmons and was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, Iowa, that consists of law enforcement personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration; Sioux City, Iowa, Police Department; Homeland Security Investigations; Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office; South Sioux City, Nebraska, Police Department; Nebraska State Patrol; Iowa National Guard; Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; United States Marshals Service; South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation; and Woodbury County Attorney’s Office.  This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Yodprasit is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-4088.

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An Iowa man and woman found with nearly two pounds of methamphetamine outside a local high school were both sentenced to nearly 20 years in prison. 

Christin Campbell-Martin, age 40, from Ames, Iowa, received the prison sentence on September 30, 2020, following a guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance near a protected location. 

Adam Scott Leiva, age 28, from Marshalltown, Iowa, received the prison sentence yesterday, October 7, 2020, following a guilty plea to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance near a protected location

Information disclosed at their sentencing and plea hearings showed that on May 25, 2018, Campbell-Martin and Leiva were confronted by Marion, Iowa, police officers.  The officers located Campbell-Martin’s car, which was stopped in the Marion High School parking lot late at night.  Both Campbell-Martin and Leiva provided fake names to officers.  Officers determined their correct names and learned that both had outstanding arrest warrants.  Both Campbell-Martin and Leiva were arrested. 

During a subsequent search of the car, officers located 906.5 grams of “ice” methamphetamine.  Officers learned that Campbell-Martin and Leiva had been driving around Iowa for two to three days selling methamphetamine to people they knew.  The two also intended to sell the 906.5 gram of methamphetamine to people in the Cedar Rapids area, but were caught before they could sell it.  Both have extensive criminal histories.  Campbell-Martin has 25 prior criminal convictions and Leiva has 13.

Campbell-Martin and Leiva were sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Campbell-Martin was sentenced to 200 months’ imprisonment.  Leiva was sentenced to 235 months’ imprisonment.  Both were ordered to make payment of $100 to the special assessment fund.  They must also serve a ten-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Corkery and investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Marion Police Department, and the Mid-Iowa Drug Task Force.  

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-00079.                            

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CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – Today, the Department of Justice announced it has charged more than 500 domestic violence cases involving firearms during Fiscal Year (FY) 2020.  A Department priority since 2019 when Attorney General William P. Barr created the Department of Justice’s first ever-Domestic Violence Working Group, these charges are the result of the critical law enforcement partnership between United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, led by Acting Director Regina Lombardo, who has made domestic violence firearms-related investigations a priority.

“Keeping firearms out of the hands of dangerous criminal offenders is one of the Department of Justice’s top priorities,” said Attorney General Barr. “This is especially important when it comes to individuals with prior domestic violence convictions. The statistics are clear that when domestic violence offenders have access to guns, their partners and their families are at much greater risk of falling victim to gun violence. In fact, in some communities across America, roughly half of the homicides are related to domestic violence. The Department of Justice is committed to keeping guns out of the hands of those who are prohibited from having them, and we will continue investigating and prosecuting all domestic violence firearms related crimes.”

“According to the CDC, data suggests that about one in six homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner,” said ATF Acting Director Lombardo. “Nearly half of female homicide victims in the U.S. are killed by a current or former male intimate partner. ATF is committed to aggressively pursuing prohibited possession of firearms due to domestic violence convictions and certain protective orders. It is another way we prevent violent gun crime within our communities.”

Of the more than 500 cases charged, twenty cases have been brought by the Northern District of Iowa, announced U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan.

“Our office is dedicated to making our community safer by prosecuting the most dangerous offenders,” said United States Attorney Peter Deegan.  “That includes domestic abusers who unlawfully possess guns or ammunition.  Like felons and drug users, convicted domestic abusers simply cannot have guns or ammunition.  If they do so, they are violating federal law and risk being sent to federal prison.  The twenty cases our office has charged in the last year demonstrate our commitment to holding accountable armed domestic abusers.”

Under federal law, individuals with domestic violence misdemeanor and felony convictions, as well as individuals subject to domestic violence protective orders, are prohibited from possessing firearms. The data shows that offenders with domestic violence in their past pose a high risk of homicide. In fact, domestic violence abusers with a gun in the home are five times more likely to kill their partners.

The Working Group, chaired by U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox, of the Northern District of Texas, disseminates legal guidance on keeping guns out of the hands of domestic violence abusers using three federal statutes:

• 18 USC § 922 (g)(1), felon in possession of a firearm
• 18 USC § 922 (g)(9), possession of a firearm by a prohibited person (misdemeanor crime of domestic violence)  
• 18 USC § 922 (g)(8), possession of a firearm while subject to a domestic violence protective order

Based on the Working Group’s guidance, in FY 2020, U.S. Attorneys’ Offices nationwide brought 337 domestic violence felon-in-possession charges, 54 possession while subject to a protective order charges, and 142 possession by a prohibited person charges.

For more information on domestic violence or to get help, visit the National Domestic Violence Hotline website or call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

A Waterloo man who unlawfully possessed a loaded gun as a felon and an unlawful drug user was sentenced October 6, 2020, to 15 months in federal prison. 

Garrett Tomlinson, age 20, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after a June 26, 2020 guilty plea to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.  Information disclosed at sentencing showed that, when officers arrived to the scene of a domestic disturbance, Tomlinson tried to run to the upstairs of his residence while carrying a backpack with a loaded gun inside of it.  Statements at sentencing also showed that, in addition to possessing the gun unlawfully, Tomlinson also unlawfully sold drugs.   

Tomlinson was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Tomlinson was sentenced to 15 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Tomlinson is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jake Schunk and investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the Waterloo Police Department.   

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-2010.

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A drug user from rural Decorah, Iowa, who unlawfully possessed ammunition was sentenced in federal court on October 5, 2020.

In a plea agreement and at the sentencing hearing, William Fredric Harrison, Jr., age 60, admitted that, on November 23, 2018, he purchased an assault rifle and 200 rounds of ammunition in Onalaska, Wisconsin.  The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System delayed the sale.  Harrison was only able to take the ammunition home to Iowa on that day.  On November 24, 2018, Harrison made multiple telephone calls from his rural Decorah residence to the emergency room at a Decorah hospital.  In one of the calls, Harrison expressed frustration with one of the doctors at the hospital and stated, “I want to come down there and make all of you feel the terror that I am feeling.  All of you will be dead.”  The calls triggered a two-day lockdown of the hospital. 

On November 26, 2018, Harrison filled out an application in the Iowa District Court for Allamakee County seeking the return of three firearms and ammunition that law enforcement officers had seized from his residence in 2016 arising out of an incident in which Harrison was later convicted of assaulting his wife.  On November 29, 2018, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Harrison’s home and located the 200 rounds of ammunition that Harrison had purchased in Wisconsin.  Officers also found marijuana paraphernalia.

Harrison was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Harrison was sentenced to over ten months of imprisonment.  The district court also ordered Harrison pay $10,000 for his court-appointed attorney.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  As a result of this federal conviction, Harrison is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them.  As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and investigated by the Winneshiek County Sheriff’s Office and the Decorah Police Department. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-1048.

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Methamphetamine remains a dangerous drug that adversely affects the health and safety of our communities.  Methamphetamine trafficking also often involves the use of firearms and violence.  The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to prosecuting those who profit from trafficking and selling this poison.  Two ongoing cases in federal district court in Sioux City demonstrate both the dangers methamphetamine represent and the importance of prosecuting these dangerous drug traffickers.

On October 8, 2020, Monee Yodprasit will be sentenced in federal district court in Sioux City, Iowa, following his conviction for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.  In addition, another defendant, Liborio Martinez-Rubio, is pending sentencing after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.  

On October 8, 2020, at 4:00 p.m., representatives of the United States Attorney’s Office, the United States Drug Enforcement Agency, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Sioux City Police Department will hold a press conference in front of the Sioux City Police Department, 601 Douglas St., in Sioux City, Iowa, to discuss the cases.

Event Details

When:       October 8, 2020

Where:      Sioux City Police Department, 601 Douglas St.

Time:        4:00 p.m.

Press releases and interview opportunities will be available. 

To RSVP, please email Timothy Duax at timothy.duax@usdoj.gov or call 712-202-1712.

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A man who led a group invading a Waterloo home was sentenced today to ten years in federal prison.

James Welton, age 41, from Independence, Iowa, received the prison term after a March 19, 2020 guilty plea to one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Evidence at the sentencing hearing showed that Welton led a group of individuals into a Waterloo home on the evening of October 21, 2019.  The group was armed with two stolen firearms.  Once they got into the residence, they attempted to kidnap one of the residents, assaulted one person, and discharged both guns.

Welton was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Welton was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment and fined $50,000.  He was also ordered to prepay the Court $8500 for the cost of his court appointed attorney.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Welton is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Reinert and was investigated by the Waterloo Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-2006.

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A felon and illegal user of controlled substances who unlawfully possessed a firearm was sentenced to more than three years in prison. 

Robert Schonrock, age 50, from Sioux City, received the prison term after a March 23, 2020, guilty plea to one count of Possession of a Firearm by a Felon and one count of Possession of a Stolen Firearm.

Information presented by the United States at the detention, change of plea, and sentencing hearings revealed that on or about April 30, 2019, Rodolfo Velasco absconded from supervised release in United States District Court for the District of Nebraska.  On or about May 30, 2019, Velasco was found, in possession of drugs and a handgun, at the home of Schonrock, in Sioux City, Iowa.  Schonrock, a thrice convicted felon himself, was found in possession of a loaded handgun that had been reported stolen.  

Schonrock was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Schonrock was sentenced to 41 months’ imprisonment.   He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

On May 29, 2020, Velasco was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand. Velasco was sentenced to 77 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a one-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Schonrock is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. The United States Attorney’s Office has prosecuted this case with support from our Project Guardian partners.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case was investigated by the United States Marshal’s Service and the Sioux City Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-4058.

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A Waterloo man who escaped from a halfway house where he had been ordered to reside by a federal court was sentenced today to an additional four months in federal prison.

Zavyon Nix, age 23, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after a guilty plea to one count of escape from federal custody.  Nix was originally sentenced to 30 months’ imprisonment for possession of a firearm by an unlawful drug user in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids on June 6, 2017, with a term of supervised release to follow.  As a condition of Nix’s supervised release, he was required to reside in the Waterloo Residential Correctional Facility.  He walked away from the facility and was missing for approximately a month.  The United States Marshal’s Service apprehended Nix at his mother’s residence.

Nix was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Nix was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment and fined $100.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Nix is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Liz Dupuich and investigated by the United States Marshal’s Service. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-CR-2027-CJW.

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Two Iowa men were sentenced to federal prison for firearms charges.

Christopher Anthony Craig, age 27, from Duncombe, Iowa, received the prison term after an August 18, 2020, guilty plea to one-count of Receipt and Possession of an Unregistered Firearm.         

Deacon Smith-Downs, age 29, from Ogden, Iowa, received his prison term after a May 18, 2020, guilty plea to one-count of Possession of a Firearm by a Drug User and one count of Receipt and Possession of an Unregistered Firearm.

Evidence presented at the change of plea and sentencing hearings in this case revealed the following:  Sometime between about September 1, 2018 and February 21, 2019, Smith-Downs and Craig were unlawful users of controlled substances and Smith-Downs acquired an illegal sawed-off shotgun.  On or about February 20 and 21, 2019, the two men, and Smith-Downs’ wife, got high together and handled the shotgun.  On or about February 21, 2019, Smith-Downs informed 911 that his wife had killed herself with the sawed-off shotgun.  When law enforcement arrived they found the deceased woman, Smith-Downs, Craig, and the illegal shotgun. Smith-Downs eventually (during a subsequent interview) admitted to being a user of methamphetamine and marijuana and that he, his wife, and Craig had all handled the weapon within 12 hours of the fatal shooting. 

On August 18, 2020, Craig was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Craig was sentenced to seven months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a twelve-month term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

On September 22, 2020, Smith-Downs was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Smith-Downs was sentenced to 42 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 24-month term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Craig and Smith Downs are being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until they can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was investigated by the Webster County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and Boone County Sheriff’s Office.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-3048..

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A Cedar Rapids man who was previously convicted of mail and identity theft and who signed out of a Waterloo halfway house for work and never returned was sentenced October 1, 2020, to nearly two years in federal prison.

Darrell Clark Turner, age 53, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after his guilty plea to one count of escape from custody.

In a plea agreement, Turner admitted that, in October 2017, he was sentenced to 38 months’ imprisonment and three years of supervised release after pleading guilty in federal court to possessing stolen mail matter and aggravated identity theft.  Turner was released from prison in June 2019.  After Turner violated his supervised release conditions, a federal judge ordered Turner to reside in a Waterloo halfway house.  On February 25, 2019, while a resident of the halfway house, Turner signed out for work but was a “no call, no show” for work.  He never returned to the halfway house.  The United States Marshal’s Service arrested Turner on March 10, 2020.

Turner was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Turner was sentenced to 23 months of imprisonment.  Turner must also serve a new three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Turner has an extensive criminal history, including more than 35 convictions.  Turner committed more than ten of those crimes while under court-ordered supervision for other crimes.  This is Turner’s third escape conviction.

Turner is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tim Vavricek and investigated by the United States Marshal’s Service. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file numbers are 20-CR-2019 and 17-CR-17.

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A man who unlawfully possessed a sawed-off shotgun was sentenced on September 30, 2020, to nearly a decade in federal prison. 

Richard Jacobson, age 56, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison sentence after a guilty plea to unlawful possession of a sawed-off shotgun.  Statements at sentencing showed that Jacobson, while high on methamphetamine, repeatedly racked or cocked the weapon while threatening to shoot at least one other person.  The judge who sentenced Jacobson, United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams, characterized Jacobson’s conduct as both “threatening and terrifying.”  The judge also noted that Jacobson had a “remarkably high number of adult felony convictions.”

Jacobson has previously been convicted of fourteen felony offenses.  Those include multiple convictions for burglary and other violent crimes.  He also has multiple prior convictions related to unlawfully possessing dangerous weapons.        

Jacobson was sentenced to 115 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jacob Schunk and investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Waterloo Police Department. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-2068.

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A Waterloo man who unlawfully possessed a firearm and possessed methamphetamine with the intent to distribute was sentenced on September 28, 2020, to almost four years in federal prison.

Corvelous Devontae Caston, age 30, from Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after a March 4, 2020 guilty plea to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine after having previously been convicted of a felony drug offense.

Information disclosed at sentencing showed that, on September 11, 2019, Caston was the backseat passenger of a car stopped by police.  As officers approached the car, Caston opened his door and fled on foot.  Officers pursued and eventually apprehended Caston.  Officers recovered a loaded firearm with no serial number from Caston’s waistband and a mason jar containing a number of multi-colored pills that contained methamphetamine. 

Caston was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Caston was sentenced to 46 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a six-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Caston is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.

Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Dillan Edwards and investigated by a Federal Task Force composed of the Waterloo Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms assisted by the Black Hawk Count Sheriff’s Office and Cedar Falls Police Department. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-02072.

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A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine while possessing firearms pled guilty September 16, 2020, in federal court in Sioux City.

Jacob Hernandez, 26, from Storm Lake, Iowa, was convicted of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

At the plea hearing, Hernandez admitted that from January 2020 through March 2020, he was involved in a conspiracy that distributed more than 4 pounds of methamphetamine in the Storm Lake and Fonda areas.  In March 2020, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Hernandez’s residence. During the search, officers seized $5,010 cash on Hernandez, cell phone, torch lighter, and vape pen. Officers also searched Hernandez’s garage and found: a Kimber .45 caliber pistol and a 20 gauge shotgun; approximately 2 ounces of methamphetamine and 1.4 pounds of marijuana, 3 ounces of marijuana, drug ledgers, drug paraphernalia, various types of ammunition, vacuum seal bags, vacuum sealer, and two ballistic vests. 

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Hernandez will remain in custody pending sentencing.  Hernandez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and at least five years of supervised release following any imprisonment on the drug conviction.  On the firearm conviction, Hernandez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment, which must be served consecutive to any term of imprisonment imposed on the drug conviction and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $250,000 file, and up to five years of supervised release.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mikala Steenholdt and was investigated by the Iowa Department of Narcotics Enforcement, Buena Vista County Sheriff’s Office, Clay County Sheriff’s Office, Sac County Sheriff’s Office, and the Iowa Division of Criminalistics Laboratory. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-3029.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

Jason Clark, 47, from Kansas City, KS, pled guilty and was sentenced on September 23, 2020, to more than 10 years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine.

Evidence at the hearing showed that Clark was involved in a distribution conspiracy that included more than 50 grams of methamphetamine.  On or about May 18, 2019, in Woodbury County, Iowa, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of Clark.  During the traffic stop, officers observed a loaded handgun magazine in the vehicle.  A subsequent pat-down of Clark revealed a knife in his pocket.  Officers seized roughly a half-pound of methamphetamine from Clark’s vehicle. 

Clark was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Clark was sentenced to 128 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Clark is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood and investigated by Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, Iowa, that consists of law enforcement personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration; Sioux City, Iowa, Police Department; Homeland Security Investigations; Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office; South Sioux City, Nebraska, Police Department; Nebraska State Patrol; Iowa National Guard; Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; United States Marshals Service; South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation; and Woodbury County Attorney’s Office.   

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-4002.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A man who illegally possessed a gun pled guilty September 24, 2020, in federal court in Sioux City.

Michael Limkemann, 35, Clarksville, IA, was convicted of illegal possession of a firearm as a felon and user of controlled substances.  Limkemann was previously convicted of felony drug and weapons crimes which made it illegal for him to possess a gun.

At the plea hearing, Limkemann admitted that sometime in either May or September 2019, Limkemann had given a .22 rifle to another drug user.  Limkemann further admitted to possessing the .22 rifle while he was a user of methamphetamine and marijuana.  

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Limkemann remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Limkemann faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and not more than 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities. For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood and was investigated by Clarksville Police Department, Butler County Sheriff’s Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Enforcement. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20-3010.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A man who distributed heroin near a truck stop was sentenced today to more than three years in federal prison.

Orlando Wash, age 30, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a May 21, 2020 guilty plea to one count of distribution of heroin near a truck stop after having been previously convicted of a felony drug offense.

At the guilty plea and sentencing hearings, information showed that Wash sold heroin in the Cedar Rapids area from 2016 through 2019.  Specifically on November 8, 2018, Wash sold heroin to an individual working for the Cedar Rapids Police Department near a truck stop located near I-380 in Cedar Rapids. Wash admitted he was responsible for possessing of a firearm during the period he was selling heroin.

Wash was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Wash was sentenced to 41 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a six-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Wash is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Reinert and investigated as part of the Northern Iowa Heroin Initiative and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program of the United States Department of Justice by Cedar Rapids Safe Streets Task Force.  The task force is composed of representatives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cedar Rapids Police Department.   Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 19-CR-00127.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A Cedar Rapids man who unlawfully possessed a firearm was sentenced yesterday to fifteen years in federal prison.

Carlos Dejuan Hutchinson, age 41, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.

Information disclosed at sentencing showed that, on October 12, 2019, Hutchinson was the front-seat passenger in a truck that was stopped by police.  Hutchinson and the driver were both removed from the truck.  Officers found a pistol in the right rear pocket of Hutchinson’s pants.  Hutchinson was arrested and placed in the back of a police car, where he attempted to ditch a methamphetamine pipe.  At the guilty plea, Hutchinson admitted he possessed the firearm while he was an unlawful user of methamphetamine and after he had previously been convicted of three burglaries.  He faced a fifteen-year mandatory minimum sentence because of his three prior burglary convictions.

Hutchinson was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams.  Hutchinson was sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Hutchinson is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Dillan Edwards and investigated by the Cedar Rapids Safe Streets Task Force.  The task force is composed of representatives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cedar Rapids Police Department. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 19-CR-00129.

Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A felon who was found in possession of a firearm following a shots fired call pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Kendall J. Willis, age 25, from Chicago, Illinois, was convicted of one count of being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.

Evidence at a prior hearing showed that on May 21, 2020, a call was made to the Cedar Rapids 911 line.  The caller reported shots fired at an apartment complex on North Towne Court in Cedar Rapids.  Police officers arrived at the scene and spoke with multiple witnesses.  One witness saw two individuals, one of whom was later identified as Willis, walk into an apartment after the shots were fired.  The witness saw that each individual was holding a handgun.  Officers searched the ground near where the shots were fired and found three 9mm shell casings.  Willis and Johnson then left the apartment that witnesses had seen them enter and were detained.  During a later search of that apartment, officers found marijuana, drug packaging, and two 9mm pistols, one of which had an extended magazine.  Ballistics testing determined that two of the shell casings found outside the apartment were fired by one of the pistols and that the other shell casing had been fired by the other pistol.  Willis had previously been convicted of felony armed robbery charge in Chicago in 2014.

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Willis remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Willis faces a possible maximum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence; enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes; improves information-sharing by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives when a prohibited individual attempts to purchase a firearm and is denied by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), to include taking appropriate actions when a prospective purchaser is denied by the NICS for mental health reasons; and ensures that federal resources are directed at the criminals posing the greatest threat to our communities.  For more information about Project Guardian, please see /media/1122011/dl?inline.

This case was made possible by investigative leads generated from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN). NIBIN is the only national network that allows for the capture and comparison of ballistic evidence to aid in solving and preventing violent crimes involving firearms. NIBIN is a proven investigative and intelligence tool that can link firearms from multiple crime scenes, allowing law enforcement to quickly disrupt shooting cycles. For more information on NIBIN, visit https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-integrated-ballistic-information-network-nibin.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham and investigated by the Cedar Rapids Safe Streets Task Force.  The task force is composed of representatives from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cedar Rapids Police Department. 

Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. 

The case file number is 20‑CR‑00058‑CJW‑MAR.

Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.