Northern District of Iowa

A woman who committed perjury while testifying in federal proceedings was sentenced on March 31, 2015 to six months in federal prison.

Ashley Tufte, 29, from Aredale, Iowa, received the prison term after a January 9, 2015, guilty plea to one count of perjury.

In a plea agreement, Tufte admitted she lied while testifying before a federal grand jury.

Tufte was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Tufte was sentenced to 6 months’ imprisonment and fined $1,000.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  She must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Tufte 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 Matthew J. Cole and investigated by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-131.

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A Dubuque man who possessed an unregistered sawed-off shotgun was sentenced on March 26, 2015 to more than seven years in federal prison.

Jordan Michael Edmonds, age 24, from Dubuque, Iowa, received the prison term after a December 29, 2014 guilty plea to one count of possession of an unregistered sawed-off shotgun.

At the plea hearing, Edmonds admitted that, on or about June 14, 2014, he knowingly possessed a 12-gauge shotgun with a barrel less than 18 inches that had a partially obliterated serial number.  The shotgun was not registered to him.

Edmonds was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Edmonds was sentenced to 87 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed, and he was ordered to pay $626.78 in restitution.  He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Erin R. Eldridge and Assistant United States Attorney C.J. Williams and was investigated by the Dubuque Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-1017.

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A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine was sentenced March 23, 2015, to more than 21 years in federal prison.

Christopher Lee Evenson, 32, from Mason City, Iowa, received the prison term after a November 14, 2014, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Evenson was previously convicted of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver in 2004.

At the guilty plea, Evenson admitted his involvement from January 2014 through August 2014, in a conspiracy that distributed more than 50 grams of actual (pure) methamphetamine.  Evenson was found in possession of 109.75 grams of methamphetamine in August 2014, when the vehicle in which he was a passenger was stopped.  The methamphetamine was located under the front passenger seat, where Evenson was seated.  Evenson admitted to selling approximately a pound of ice methamphetamine.

Evenson was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Evenson was sentenced to 262 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $200 was imposed.  He must also serve a 10-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Evenson 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 Jack Lammers and investigated by the North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force, Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office, Mason City Police Department, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-3048.

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A man who failed to appear for a supervised release revocation hearing in U.S. District Court was sentenced today to more than a year in federal prison.

Jeremiah Wroblewski, 36, from New Hartford, Iowa, received the prison term after a September 12, 2014, guilty plea to one count of failure to appear.

Wroblewski was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Wroblewski was sentenced to 21 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Wroblewski 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 Matthew J. Cole.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-89.

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A man who used a machete to murder his parents on the Meskwaki Nation Settlement was sentenced today to life in federal prison without the possibility of parole.

Gordon Lasley, Jr., age 26, from the Meskwaki Nation Settlement, Iowa, received the prison term after a December 17, 2014, jury verdict finding him guilty of two counts of Second Degree Murder.

The evidence at trial showed that, on February 5, 2014, Lasley murdered Gordon Lasley, Sr. and Kim Renee Lasley at their home on the Meskwaki Nation Settlement by striking them each multiple times with a machete.  Lasley’s attorneys unsuccessfully argued Lasley was insane at the time of the murders and should not be held criminally responsible for the murders.

Lasley was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Lasley was sentenced to a term of life imprisonment on each count, with the prison terms to run consecutively.  A special assessment of $200 was imposed, and he was ordered to make $156.80 in restitution to the Iowa Crime Victim Compensation program.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Lasley 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 CJ Williams and Anthony Morfitt and was investigated by the Meskwaki Nation Tribal Police Department, the Tama County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/.  The case file number is 14-CR-00045.

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Today the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa recognized Women’s History Month 2015 by hosting a program commemorating the 40th anniversary of the landmark Iowa Civil Rights Commission decision,      Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Parr.  United States Attorney Kevin Techau welcomed speakers and guests noting that this month, “We celebrate countless pioneering women and the legal victories they have won.”

Featured program speakers included Des Moines attorney Roxanne Conlin and Reverend Bill Cotton.  They recounted how their professional careers crossed in the early-1970s when they fought against the injustice of gender discrimination facing two Cedar Rapids school teachers.

Over 50 attendees heard the speakers tell the story of how two pregnant school teachers were forced to leave their teaching positions in the Cedar Rapids School District beginning the fifth month of their pregnancy.  One teacher, Joan Parr, was not tenured and the policy as it related to her called for a forced termination.  Reverend Cotton, the first Director of the Cedar Rapids Civil Rights Commission, challenged this discriminatory practice. As the litigation commenced, Reverend Cotton connected with then Assistant Attorney General Roxanne Conlin, who successfully prosecuted the case all the way to the Iowa Supreme Court.  In 1975, the High Court ruled that this practice discriminated against women and violated the Iowa Civil Rights Act. This case is considered a landmark ruling in Iowa jurisprudence.

One year after this ruling the US Supreme Court rejected a claim that an employer’s policy excluding pregnancy from its disability benefits plan did not violate Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act’s prohibition on sex discrimination.  Two years later Congress passed the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act which overruled this decision. http://go.usa.gov/3CefA These facts highlight not only the bravery of two Iowa teachers pioneering women’s rights but the forward thinking of Iowa’s judiciary.

Both speakers closed their presentations by noting that Iowa courts have a long history of furthering the rights of citizens in many cases well before the United States Congress or the US Supreme Court conferred them.  Speaker Conlin shared that, “This is something we as Iowans should have great pride in.”

US Attorney Techau echoed the Presidential Proclamation proclaiming March 2015 as Women’s History Month by stating, “We know that when women succeed, America succeeds.”

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A Mexican citizen who used another person’s social security number was sentenced yesterday to serve 120 days’ incarceration.

Roberto Ambrosio-Salvador, age 43, from Michoacan, Mexico, received the prison term after a January 8, 2015, guilty plea to misuse of a social security account number.

Information presented to the court showed Ambrosio-Salvador used a fraudulent permanent resident alien card, and a social security number issued to a person who is now deceased, for the purpose of obtaining employment in Waterloo, Iowa.

Ambrosio-Salvador was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Ambrosio-Salvador was sentenced to 120 days’ imprisonment, to be followed by a 3-year term of supervised release.

In sentencing Ambrosio-Salvador, Judge Reade noted his two prior criminal convictions for driving while intoxicated.

Ambrosio-Salvador was given credit for time served in custody and ordered released to the Department of Homeland Security detainer for processing and removal from the United States.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard L. Murphy and investigated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-2048.

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SIOUX CITY – A former Captain in the U.S. Air Force (USAF) who served in 2010 as a U.S. military contracting officer in Afghanistan, pleaded guilty yesterday to violating restrictions on post-government employment and making a false statement to law enforcement agents, announced U.S. Attorney Kevin W. Techau of the Northern District of Iowa and Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Adam J.J. Pudenz, 35, of Carroll, Iowa, pleaded guilty to willfully violating federal conflict-of-interest laws stemming from his post-government employment with an Afghan company that contracted with the U.S. military and to making a false statement to federal law enforcement agents.  The guilty plea was entered before U.S. Magistrate Judge Leonard T. Strand of the Northern District of Iowa.  In addition to his guilty plea, Pudenz agreed in a separate civil action to surrender his Iowa residence, which he purchased with money received from his unlawful employment, to the United States.

According to his plea agreement, Pudenz served as a contracting official at Camp Eggers, near Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2010.  In that capacity, Pudenz admitted that he administered at least three major U.S. government contracts, all held by the same Afghan company, for the purchase of clothing and footwear for Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF).

Pudenz admitted that prior to departing Afghanistan in December 2010, he began negotiating his future employment with the same Afghan company that held the contracts he administered, a fact that he later lied about during a subsequent law enforcement investigation.   In his new position with the Afghan company, Pudenz admitted that he violated the conflict of interest laws by returning to Afghanistan and lobbying U.S. government officials on matters directly related to the same contracts he had previously administered.  

This case is being and investigated by the FBI, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, and U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command (CID).  The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Wade Weems of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard L. Murphy of the Northern District of Iowa.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 15-3008.

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Colton Rickels, age 19, of Monticello, Iowa, has been charged with one count of attempted enticement of a minor.  The charge is contained in an Indictment filed on March 4, 2015, in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.

The Indictment alleges that, in October 2014, Rickels attempted to persuade, induce, entice, and coerce a minor female to engage in criminal sexual activity.

If convicted, Rickels faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and at least five years and up to life on supervised release following any imprisonment.

Rickels appeared for a detention hearing today in federal court in Cedar Rapids and was released on bond.  Rickels’ next appearance for trial is set for May 4, 2015.

As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and was investigated by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Monticello Police Department, and the Cedar Rapids Police Department.

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.”

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR 15-20.

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Gwendolyn Murray, 33, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has been charged with twelve counts of filing false claims for tax refunds, seven counts of theft of government property, and two counts of aggravated identity theft.­  The charges are contained in an Indictment unsealed on March 3, 2015, in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.

The Indictment alleges that in 2012 and 2013, Murray, using other names, prepared and filed twelve fraudulent tax returns claiming tax refunds to which no one was entitled.  The Indictment further alleges that she stole money from the Internal Revenue Service when she received refunds from seven of the fraudulent returns she filed.  Finally, the Indictment alleges Murray stole the identities of two people by using their names, social security numbers, and signatures in furtherance of her theft of government property.

If convicted on all charges, Murray faces a mandatory minimum sentence of two years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of 134 years’ imprisonment, a fine, $2100 in special assessments, and a term of supervised release following any imprisonment.­

Murray appeared on March 3, 2015, in federal court in Cedar Rapids and was released on bond.  Murray’s next appearance for trial is set for May 4, 2015.

As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Morfitt and was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov.  The case file number is 15-CR-0015-LRR.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.

A Wisconsin man pled guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute methamphetamine February 27, 2015, in federal court in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

During the conspiracy, from January 2012 through December 2014, Ryan Michael Schroeder, age 26, from LaCrosse, Wisconsin, conspired to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. Schroeder conducted transactions involving multiple ounce quantities of methamphetamine in Hampton and Mason City, Iowa. Schroeder was also delivering and selling methamphetamine to numerous persons in Minnesota.      

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Schroeder remains in custody of the United States Marshal; was taken into custody by the United States Marshal after the guilty plea and pending sentencing.  Schroeder faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and 5-years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jack Lammers and was investigated by the North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force, Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office, Mason City Police Department, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/.  The case file number is 14-CR-3071.

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A Mason City man was sentenced February 25, 2015, for his role in a Mason City area methamphetamine conspiracy.

Scott Lee Bailey, age 44, of Mason City, Iowa, received his prison term after an October 16, 2014, guilty plea.  Bailey pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.  Bailey was previously convicted of a felony drug offense in Stockton, California, in 2007.

Information provided by the United States at the sentencing and change of plea hearings showed Bailey distributed methamphetamine to confidential informants in the Mason City area.  On May 1, 2014, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at defendant’s residence, and his 2001 Chevrolet.  Officers seized from the residence a handgun, $5,613 in U.S. currency, prescription pills, surveillance equipment, baggies, and narcotic paraphernalia.  Located in defendant’s vehicle was 18.72 grams 99% pure methamphetamine.

Bailey was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Bailey was sentenced to 292 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  He must also serve an 8-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Bailey 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 Jack Lammers    and investigated by the North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force, Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office, Mason City Police Department, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/.  The case file number is CR 14-3046.

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A woman who failed to surrender to serve a previous sentence for illegal re-entry was sentenced February 27, 2015, to 12 months in in federal prison.

Maria Parra-Rosales, age 27, from Mexico, received the prison term after an October 27, 2014, guilty plea to one count of failure to surrender.

At the guilty plea, Parra-Rosales admitted she fled to Mexico after being convicted on November 15, 2013, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Iowa of illegal re-entry as an aggravated felon.  Parra-Rosales was to self-surrender to the Waseca Women’s Institution in Minnesota on May 15, 2014.  She failed to surrender, and a warrant was issued for her arrest. Eventually, she surrendered herself to the U.S. Border Patrol at the United States border on June 26, 2014.

Parra-Rosales was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Parra-Rosales was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment.  She must also serve a 1-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  There is no parole in the federal system.

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

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Fletcher and investigated by the U.S. Marshals’ Service and Homeland Security Investigations.  

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR14-4077.

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A man who illegally re-entered the United States from Mexico was sentenced February 27, 2015, to 7 months in in federal prison.

Christian Vargas-Ortiz, age 22, from Mexico, received the prison term after a November 6, 2014, guilty plea to one count of illegal re-entry as an aggravated felon.

At the guilty plea, Vargas-Ortiz admitted he had re-entered the United States without permission after being removed from the country on May 30, 2014.  On November 6, 2013, Vargas-Ortiz was convicted of identity theft and forgery in the Iowa District Court for Sioux County.  Vargas-Ortiz came to the attention of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) after he was arrested on August 22, 2014, in Sioux County, Iowa for driving while license barred.

Vargas-Ortiz was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Vargas-Ortiz was sentenced to 7 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.

Vargas-Ortiz 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 Kevin C. Fletcher and investigated by HSI and the Enforcement and Removal Office of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Bureau.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR14-4077.

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A man who distributed child pornography pled guilty on March 2, 2015, in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

William Smith, age 33, from Jesup, Iowa, was convicted of one count of distribution of child pornography.

At the plea hearing, Smith admitted that, in June 2013, he used a cell phone to distribute child pornography.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Smith was taken into custody by the United States Marshal after the guilty plea and will remain in custody pending sentencing.  Smith faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment, and supervised release for 5 years to life following his imprisonment.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and was investigated by the Marion Police Department.

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.”

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR 14-140.

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An illegal alien who assumed the identity of a U.S. citizen, obtained a U.S. passport, and voted in the 2012 presidential election was sentenced today to more than four years in federal prison.

Abel Hernandez-Labra, age 44, an illegal alien living in Hampton, Iowa, received the prison term after a November 4, 2014, guilty plea to one count of making false statements in a passport application, one count of aggravated identity theft, one count of making a false claim of U.S. citizenship to register to vote, and one count of harboring an illegal alien.

In a plea agreement, Hernandez-Labra admitted that he is a Mexican citizen who illegally entered the United States.  Hernandez-Labra admitted he purchased a birth certificate and social security number of an American citizen born in Puerto Rico and assumed that identity.  Falsely claiming to be a United States citizen, Hernandez-Labra used those documents to obtain Iowa driver’s licenses which he in turn used to apply for and fraudulently obtain a U.S. passport in 2008 and to unlawfully register and vote in the 2012 federal election.  Hernandez-Labra also admitted that, during 2014, he harbored and encouraged an illegal alien to reside unlawfully in the United States by providing work and a residence and by not reporting the alien to immigration authorities.

Hernandez-Labra was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Hernandez-Labra was sentenced to 51 months’ imprisonment and fined $5,000.  A special assessment of $400 was imposed.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Hernandez-Labra 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 Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by agents from the U.S. Department of State, Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) Chicago Field Office; the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations; the Iowa Division of Investigations and Appeals; the Iowa Bureau of Investigation and Identity Protection; the Hampton Police Department; the Webster City Police Department; and the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-3036.

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Two Dubuque men who were responsible for an apartment fire caused by a failed methamphetamine cook were each sentenced today to lengthy stays in federal prison.

John Starks Sr., age 47, will spend 16 years in federal prison after his June 26, 2014 guilty plea to conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine near a school.  Casey Duhme, age 25, will serve almost 9 years in federal prison after his June 25, 2014 guilty plea to the same offense.

Sentencing documents and statements made at the sentencing hearings reflect that Starks and Duhme were both involved in attempting to manufacture methamphetamine in Starks’s apartment on White Street in Dubuque, in the early morning hours of February 20, 2014.  The apartment was part of a multi-family apartment building, and was located directly across the street from an elementary school.  Duhme and Starks each provided pseudoephedrine pills for the attempted manufacture of methamphetamine.  Duhme purchased some of the pills himself and received additional pills from a friend.  Starks received pills from multiple people, including his wife and adult son.  Starks also directed an autistic individual—who did not understand the criminal nature of his actions—to purchase pills for Starks.

Their attempt to make methamphetamine caused a fire to erupt in the apartment.  Starks, Duhme, and Starks’s wife fled the apartment.  No one called 911 or alerted anyone about the fire.  Just minutes after the trio left the apartment, a police officer doing routine patrol noticed smoke coming out of the building.  The officer evacuated the other tenants just moments before the roof of the entire building collapsed.  Due to fire and smoke damage, the entire building was rendered unsuitable for living.  Multiple tenants suffered property loss and were left without a home.  One tenant was treated at a hospital for smoke inhalation.

Starks and Duhme were sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Starks was sentenced to 192 months’ imprisonment.  Duhme was sentenced to 105 months’ imprisonment.  Each defendant was required to pay a $100 special assessment and must serve a six-year term of supervised released following their prison terms.  Starks and Duhme were ordered to make $322,281 in restitution to victims of the offense, including the owner of the building, other tenants, and an insurance company. There is no parole in the federal system.

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

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Justin Lightfoot and investigated by the Dubuque Police Department, the Dubuque Fire Department, and the Dubuque Drug Task Force, which consists of the Dubuque Police Department and the Dubuque County Sheriff’s Department.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/ cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-cr-1009.

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A Mexican man who unlawfully re-entered the United States after having been deported following his 2010 Tama County, Iowa, convictions for child endangerment and domestic abuse assault with a dangerous weapon, was sentenced today to serve 41 months in federal prison.

Luciano Garcia-Corona, 37, from Mexico, and most recently a resident of 430 Mesqwaki Road, Tama, Iowa, received the prison term after having pleaded guilty on November 21, 2014, to one count of unlawful re-entry following deportation as an aggravated felon, and one count of unlawful possession of identity documents.

Garcia-Corona was deported from the United States on December 28, 2011, following his 2010 convictions in Tama County, Iowa.  Garcia-Corona had also been deported on December 15, 1999.  Following each of his prior deportations, Garcia-Corona unlawfully returned to the United States and committed violent crimes.  In April 2014, Garcia-Corona was convicted and sentenced in Tama County, Iowa, following convictions for arson in the third degree, domestic abuse assault, three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, child endangerment, and identity theft.

Garcia-Corona was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Garcia-Corona was sentenced to 41 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $200 was imposed, and he was ordered to serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

At the sentencing hearing, Judge Reade noted Garcia-Corona’s violent criminal history; use of numerous aliases; prior lenient treatment by the state courts; history of immigration violations; and general lack of respect for the law.

Garcia-Corona 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 Richard L. Murphy and investigated by Homeland Security Investigations.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-76.

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A man who unlawfully used another individual’s identity to apply for credit pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Terry L. Gantt, age 28, from Cedar Rapids, was convicted of one count of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

At the plea hearing, Gantt admitted that, between November 2012 and February 2013, he knowingly participated in a scheme to defraud by using another individual’s identity to apply for credit in the other individual’s name.  Gantt used the other individual’s name and social security number to commit the offense.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Gantt remains in custody of the United States Marshal.  Gantt faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 2 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of 22 years’ imprisonment, a $500,000 fine, $200 in special assessments, and 4 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jacob Schunk and was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Cedar Rapids Police Department.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-142-LRR.

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A man who failed to register as a sex offender was sentenced today to 21 months in federal prison.

Christopher Pate, age 44, of Cedar Falls, Iowa, received the sentence after a December 15, 2014 guilty plea to one count of failing to register as a sex offender.  At the guilty plea hearing, Pate admitted that he moved from North Carolina to Iowa and did not register as a sex offender in Iowa.  Pate was required to register because of his 2001 Black Hawk County conviction for sexual abuse in the third degree.

Pate was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Pate was sentenced to 21 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed, and Pate must also serve a five-year term of supervised release.  He must comply with all sex offender registration and public notification requirements.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and was investigated by the United States Marshals Service, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office.

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.”

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR 14-2050.

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A mother and her son who were convicted of selling synthetic cannabinoids (commonly known as “K2”) and synthetic cathinones (commonly known as “bath salts”) from two eastern Iowa businesses were sentenced today in federal court in Cedar Rapids to [several years in] federal prison.

“Synthetic drugs are illegal and present a grave danger to our community, particularly our children,” said United States Attorney Kevin Techau.  “Iowans can be very proud of the hard work and cooperation by federal, state and local law enforcement that brought these important cases to a successful conclusion.”

“The manufacture, sale, and abuse of synthetic drugs represents a clear and detrimental danger to our society,” said Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Resident Agent in Charge Scott Smith.  “These substances serve no legitimate purpose other than to generate a powerful intoxication for the user while generating enormous illicit profits for the criminal organizations who pander them.  These powerful chemicals are generally manufactured and produced in a foreign laboratory environment without safety protocols nor concerns for their potential negative effects which ultimately leaves the users at great risk of death.”

“It is DEA’s global footprint pledge, with the assistance of our law enforcement partners, to remain vigilant in our pursuit of identifying, investigating, arresting, and seizing any illicit assets from those criminal organizations who continue to circumvent the law by producing, transporting, and distributing synthetic drugs.    Today’s announcement represents the culmination of months of teamwork between state, local, and federal partners.  It should serve notice to any criminal organization operating with a nexus to Iowa that law enforcement will not obscurely stand in the shadows, but rather will utilize all available resources to bring them to justice and hold them accountable for their actions.”

 

The Ramos’s Convictions and Sentences

Mary Ann Ramos, age 53, from Evansdale, Iowa, received the prison term after a June 26, 2014, jury verdict finding her guilty of four counts: (1) distribution of the synthetic drug XLR-11; (2) distribution of the synthetic drug alpha-PVP; (3) possession with intent to distribute XLR-11; and (4) possession with intent to distribute alpha-PVP.  The jury acquitted Mary Ramos of a charge of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug crime.  Mary Ramos was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade to 60 months’ imprisonment to be followed be a 3-year term of supervised release.  She was also ordered to pay a special assessment of $400.

Earl James Ramos, age 26, from Evansdale, Iowa, received the prison term after a June 13, 2014, guilty plea to one count of distributing the controlled substance analogue pentedrone.  Earl Ramos was sentenced by Chief Judge Reade to 57 months’ imprisonment to be followed be a 3-year term of supervised release.  He was also ordered to pay a special assessment of $100.

There is no parole in the federal system.  Both Mary Ramos and Earl Ramos are being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until they can be transported to federal prison.

 

The Dangers of Synthetic Drugs

According to information disclosed at a January 23, 2015, sentencing hearing, synthetic drugs present a significant threat to public safety.

Synthetic cannabinoids are substances synthesized in laboratories that mimic the biological effects of THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.  These chemicals were initially used in the 1980s as research tools to develop novel therapies for various clinical conditions.  Other synthetic cannabinoids were synthesized in the mid-1990s and studied to further advance the understanding of drug-receptor interactions regarding the cannabinoid system.  Drug traffickers have diverted these research chemicals from their former, legitimate, use, for sale to users seeking to obtain a high.  Adverse effects of synthetic cannabinoids on the human body include hallucinations, paranoia, tachycardia, and even death.  Due to their sometimes professional-looking packaging, nominal ingredient lists, availability at otherwise-legitimate storefronts, and false marketing as a legal or safe form of marijuana, customers often incorrectly assume the synthetic cannabinoid products are legal or otherwise safe to consume.  The drug traffickers frequently mislabel the packages of synthetic cannabinoids as “potpourri” or “incense” and incorrectly assume that marking the packages as “not for human consumption” provides a legal defense to criminal prosecution.

For the past several years, there has also been a growing use of, and interest in, synthetic cathinones sold under the guise of “bath salts” or “plant food.”  These products are comprised of a class of dangerous substances perceived to mimic cocaine, LSD, MDMA, and/or methamphetamine.  Users have reported impaired perception, reduced motor control, disorientation, extreme paranoia, and violent episodes.  The long-term physical and psychological effects of use are unknown but potentially severe.  The American Association of Poison Control Centers reported 2,656 calls related to synthetic cathinone (“bath salts”) exposures in 2012 and overdose deaths have been reported as well.

These products have become increasingly popular, particularly among teens and young adults and those who mistakenly believe they can bypass the drug testing protocols of employers and government agencies to protect public safety.  They are sold at a variety of retail outlets, in head shops, and over the Internet.  However, they have not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for human consumption or for medical use, and there is no oversight of the manufacturing process.

 

The Ramos’s Offenses of Conviction

The evidence at Mary Ramos’ June 2014 trial showed that Mary Ramos sold a drug called XLR-11 under various brand names including “Mister Nice Guy,” “Mr. Happy,” “Diablo,” “Insane,” “Hydro,” “LOL,” and “777.”  XLR-11 is a synthetic cannabinoid similar to THC, but the substances were labeled as incense or potpourri, and labeled as “not for human consumption.”  Evidence at trial showed Ramos sold the XLR-11 products from a store where she worked in Cedar Rapids and offered smoking papers along with the XLR-11 products she sold to undercover officers.  The evidence also showed Ramos charged about $25 for a single package of purported “incense.”

Ramos also sold a drug called Alpha-PVP under the brand name “Blue.”  Alpha-PVP is a form of synthetic cathinone, which is a stimulant similar to methamphetamine or cocaine.  The “Blue” substance was falsely labeled as scouring powder, and sold by Ramos for $50 per jar, despite the fact that Alpha-PVP has no cleaning properties.  Each $50 jar of “Blue” contained less than half a gram of powder.  A witness at trial testified that using “Blue” was just like using methamphetamine.

At the time Ramos sold and possessed the Alpha-PVP, that substance was an illegal controlled substance analogue under federal law.  The term “controlled substance analogue” refers to a substance that is chemically similar to, and has substantially similar or greater effects on humans than a substance in Schedule I or II of the Controlled Substances Act.  Controlled substance analogues are illegal under federal law if intended for human consumption.  The evidence at trial showed Ramos not only sold the synthetic drugs from a store where she worked in Cedar Rapids, but also sold the “bath salts” and “K2” from her car to a confidential informant during the nighttime.

                                                                         

(The above images depict packages of “Blue” possessed by Mary Ramos).

Earl James Ramos was convicted of distributing pentedrone, another synthetic “bath salt,” from a convenience store he managed in Waterloo.  At the time he sold the pentedrone, it was an illegal controlled substance analogue under federal law.

Court documents reflect that Earl Ramos was the manager of the Five Star Snacks and I‑Wireless store in Waterloo, Iowa.  Beginning in at least 2012, Earl Ramos began selling synthetic drugs from the Five Star Snacks store and from other locations at the request of certain customers.  Earl Ramos sold synthetic cannabinoid products with the brand names of “Mr. Nice Guy,” “KMA,” “LOL,” “Caution,” “California Dreams,” “Diablo,” “Hydro Kush,” “King Kong,” “Mr. Happy,” “Insane,” and “Hydro 777.”  Earl Ramos sold synthetic cathinones under the brand names of “Diamond,” “White Angel,” “Pump It,” and “Blue.”  The substance contained in the containers of “Diamond” and “Pump It” was pentedrone.  The substances contained in the containers of “Blue” were Alpha-PVP.  Earl Ramos’s store and home were searched in June 2013 and again in March 2014.  During both searches, agents seized synthetic cannabinoids and synthetic cathinones, as well as firearms.

 

The Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force and Project Synergy

The Ramos cases were 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 DEA Task Force consisting of the DEA, the Linn County Sheriff's Office, the Cedar Rapids Police Department, the Marion Police Department, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Sixth Judicial District Department of Correctional Services; the Tri-County Drug Enforcement

Task Force; the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); the Department of Homeland Security; the Internal Revenue Service (IRS); and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Intelligence Division.

Search warrants executed at the Ramos’s homes and businesses in June 2013 were conducted as part of Project Synergy, a global takedown of synthetic drug manufacturers and distributors.  In Project Synergy enforcement actions between December 2012 and June 2014, more than 227 arrests were made and 416 search warrants served in 35 states, 49 cities and five countries, along with more than $51 million in cash and assets seized.  Altogether, 9,445 kilograms of individually packaged, ready-to-sell synthetic drugs, 299 kilograms of cathinone drugs (the falsely labeled “bath salts”), 1,252 kilograms of cannabinoid drugs (used to make the so-called “fake pot” or herbal incense products), and 783 kilograms of treated plant material were seized.  Project Synergy was coordinated by DEA’s Special Operations Division, working with the DEA Office of Diversion Control, and included cases led by DEA, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the FBI, and the IRS.  In addition, law enforcement in Australia, Barbados, Panama, and Canada participated, as well as a multitude of state and local law enforcement members.  

The Ramos cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number for Mary Ramos is 13-CR-2034-LRR.  The case file number for Earl Ramos is 14-CR-2014-LRR.

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Erika Lynn Parker, age, 37 from Rockford, Iowa, and Shawn Benedict Zimmerman, age 42, from Clear Lake, Iowa, have been charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, and possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute.­  The charges are contained in an indictment unsealed today in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids.  In a separate indictment, also unsealed today in United States District Court in Cedar Rapids, William Allan Odell, II, 43, from Mason City, Iowa, was charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possessing methamphetamine with intent to distribute.   

Both indictments allege that from on or about June 2014, to December 2014, the three defendants conspired to distribute methamphetamine and possessed with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

If convicted on all charges, O’Dell faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, $200 in special assessment, and 5 years up to life of supervised release following any imprisonment; Parker faces 20 years’ imprisonment, a $1,000,000 fine, $200 in special assessments, and 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment; and Zimmerman faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of 40 years’ imprisonment, a $5,000,000 fine, $200 in special assessment, and 4 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.­

O’Dell, Parker, and Zimmerman appeared today in federal court in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Erika Parker was released on bond. Zimmerman and O’Dell were held without bond. Zimmerman’s next appearance is for a detention hearing set for March 3 2015.

As with any criminal case, a charge is merely an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jack Lammers and was investigated by the North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force, Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office, Mason City Police Department, and Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov.  The case file number for Parker and Zimmerman is 15-3011, and for O’Dell is 15-3010.

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A man who committed multiple frauds in connection with fraudulent credit cards was sentenced February 27, 2015, to more than 4 years in federal prison.

Yoirlan Tome Rojas, 34, from Storm Lake, Iowa, received the prison term after an October 23, 2014, jury verdict finding him guilty of two counts of using a counterfeit access device; one count of possession of fifteen or more counterfeit access devices; one count of money laundering; and two counts of aggravated identity theft.

Evidence at trial showed Rojas manufactured credit cards using stolen data, and utilized those cards to conduct purchases at Walmart and various other places of business in the Storm Lake, Iowa, area.  Rojas would use the manufactured credit cards to purchase gift cards to later use to make “legitimate” purchases.  At least two of the cards Rojas utilized belonged to individuals who reported unauthorized use of their credit cards.

Rojas was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Rojas was sentenced to 51 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $600 was imposed.  He must also serve a two-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Rojas 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 Jamie Bowers and investigated by the Storm Lake Iowa Police Department and the United States Secret Service. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov.  The case file number is 14-4015.

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There will be a press conference held on Monday, March 2, 2015, following the sentencing in United States v. Mary Ann Ramos, Northern District of Iowa Case Number 13-2034.

The sentencing hearing will be held at the United States Courthouse in Cedar Rapids, 111 Seventh Avenue SE, beginning at 3:00 p.m.  The press conference will be held at the United States Attorney’s Office on the second floor of the Courthouse.  United States Attorney Kevin W. Techau and representatives of the investigating agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, will comment on the case.

Press releases and interview opportunities will be available.  Representatives from the United States Attorney’s Office will escort any members of the media with camera equipment to the location of the press conference.  Please note that cameras are not allowed elsewhere in the building.

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A man who transported a minor across state lines with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity was sentenced February 24, 2015, to over 19 years in federal prison.

Christopher Heath-Lowther, age 30, of Platteville, Wisconsin, received the sentence after a November 3, 2014, guilty plea to one count of transporting a minor across a state line with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and one count of traveling across a state line for the purpose of engaging in illicit sexual conduct.  At the guilty plea hearing, Heath-Lowther admitted that, between December 2013 and February 2014, he traveled from Wisconsin to Iowa to meet a 14-year-old female and transported her to Wisconsin for the purpose of engaging in sex acts with her.

Heath-Lowther was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Heath-Lowther was sentenced to 235 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $200 was imposed, and Heath-Lowther must also serve a 10-year term of supervised release.  He must comply with all sex offender registration and public notification requirements.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Tremmel and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Platteville, Wisconsin, Police Department, and the Maquoketa Police Department.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), 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, PSC 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.”

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR 14-1014.

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A Cedar Rapids man who sold heroin that caused a heroin overdose death was sentenced today to more than 30 years in federal prison.

Ramon Cortez Freeman, age 35, from Chicago, Illinois, received the prison term after a November 24, 2014 guilty plea to distribution of heroin resulting in death, three counts of distributing heroin, and being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

At the plea hearing, Freeman admitted he distributed heroin to another individual in January 2014 who used it and died of an overdose.  Freeman also admitted to distributing heroin in February and twice in July.  Officer Bryan Furman with the Cedar Rapids Police Department and DEA Task Force testified that the purity of heroin seized or purchased by DEA in eastern Iowa has substantially increased over the past five years.  Officer Furman testified that, historically, heroin distributors have “cut” their heroin with other substances to increase the quantity and generate more profits.  This “cutting” of the heroin resulted in heroin purities as low as 1% going to the ultimate users.  In recent years, however, a new heroin business model has apparently emerged in Cedar Rapids, as heroin seized or purchased by DEA has been testing as high as nearly 90% pure—even for smaller quantities of the type being used by addicts.  Because a common dosage unit for heroin is one-tenth of a gram or less—all of which is used at once—people using the extremely pure heroin are often unknowingly ingesting several times more of the drug than they intended.  The increase in heroin purity has coincided with the increases in reported overdoses and deaths from heroin in eastern Iowa.  Court documents reflect the heroin distributed by Freeman in February and July was determined to be around 70% pure.

In addition to the heroin charges, Freeman was sentenced for possessing a stolen .45 caliber pistol loaded with seven rounds of ammunition in April 2014.  Freeman had previously been convicted of three drug felonies in Chicago, Illinois.

Freeman was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Freeman was sentenced to 365 months’ imprisonment on the death charge, 240 months’ imprisonment on the heroin distribution charges, and 120 months’ imprisonment on the firearm charge.  The sentences were all ordered to be run concurrently.  A special assessment of $500 was imposed, and he was ordered to make $9,782.84 in restitution to the family of the overdose victim.  He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

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

The case 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 Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force consisting of the DEA, Linn County Sheriff's Office, Cedar Rapids and Marion Police Departments, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Sixth Judicial District Department of Correctional Services, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR14-100-1-LRR.

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A man who submitted a fraudulent insurance claim after deliberately setting fire to his vacant home pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

James Marvin Plower, age 50, from Olin, Iowa, was convicted of one count of mail fraud and one count of using fire to commit a federal felony.

At the plea hearing, Plower admitted that, between about July 2013 and August 2014, he made upon a scheme to defraud his insurance company.  Plower admitted that, as part of the scheme, he deliberately set fire to his vacant home in Martelle, Iowa, and then submitted an insurance claim in which he falsely claimed the fire was accidental.  Plower also admitted that, as part of the scheme, he caused the insurance company to mail him a check for $66,497.46.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Plower was released on bond pending sentencing.  Plower faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $200 in special assessments, and up to 6 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Peter Deegan and was investigated by Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, United States Postal Inspection Service, Iowa State Fire Marshal Division, and the Jones County Sheriff’s Department.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 15-CR-12-LRR.

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Contact: Steve Young

A Dubuque woman who broke up cash deposits to avoid federal reporting requirements pled guilty on February 17, 2015, in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Janet E. Malone, 68, from Dubuque, Iowa, was convicted of one misdemeanor count of willful violation of an anti-structuring regulation.

In a plea agreement, Malone admitted that she made 12 structured cash deposits totaling $89,100.00 into her bank account.  The deposits were made approximately one year after IRS agents warned Malone’s husband, in her presence, that structuring laws forbid such transactions.

Sentencing before United States District Court Magistrate Judge Jon S. Scoles will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Malone remains free on bond previously set pending sentencing.  Malone faces a possible maximum sentence of less than one years’ imprisonment, a $100,000.00 fine, $25.00 in special assessments, and up to one year of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew J. Cole and was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 15-CR-01006.

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CEDAR RAPIDS – ResCare Iowa Inc. has agreed to pay $5.63 million to the United States and the state of Iowa to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting false home healthcare billings to the Medicare and Medicaid programs, the Department of Justice announced today.  ResCare Iowa – a subsidiary of Louisville, Kentucky, based ResCare Inc. – provides home healthcare services to patients in the state of Iowa.

“We commenced this investigation due to concerns that this provider was not complying with the rules and was not submitting accurate claims for payment,” said U.S. Attorney Kevin W. Techau of the Northern District of Iowa.  “When the government pays for home-based medical services, we are dedicated to ensuring the money is well spent and medically deserving patients receive the care to which they are entitled.”

“Home health agencies that bill Medicare and Medicaid must follow the rules,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Joyce R. Branda of the Justice Department’s Civil Division.  “This settlement demonstrates the Department’s commitment to safeguarding taxpayer dollars and ensuring that they are used to provide medically necessary services to federal health care beneficiaries.”

The rules of both Medicare and the state of Iowa’s Medicaid program require an independent physician to certify that home healthcare services are medically necessary and to order the specific type and amount of healthcare services to be provided by the home health agency.  Additionally, since 2011, Medicare and Iowa Medicaid rules require these independent physicians to perform an in-person “face-to-face” assessment of each patient before the home health agency can bill the government for any home healthcare services.  The settlement resolves allegations that between 2009 and 2014, ResCare Iowa billed the government for services provided to Medicare and Medicaid patients in Iowa without documenting compliance with these requirements. 
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“Home health care providers that receive Medicare and Medicaid funds must abide by rules designed to ensure taxpayer funds are spent properly and that patients receive the appropriate care,” said Special Agent in Charge Gerald T. Roy of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG).  “We will continue to hold health care providers accountable for submitting improper claims.”

Medicaid is jointly funded by the states and the federal government.  The state of Iowa, which paid part of the Medicaid funds at issue, will receive $2.32 million of the settlement amount. 

This settlement illustrates the government’s emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Health and Human Services.  The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $23.6 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $15.1 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

This settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacob Schunk for the Northern District of Iowa, HHS-OIG, and the Iowa Attorney General’s Office.  The claims settled by this agreement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

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A man who re-entered the United States following an aggravated felony conviction was sentenced on February 5, 2015, to 18 months’ in prison.

Cesar Toledo-Aguilar, age 33, from Mexico, received the prison term after a November 6, 2014, guilty plea to one count of illegal re-entry as an aggravated felon.

At the guilty plea, Toledo-Aguilar admitted he had re-entered the United States without permission after being removed from the country on May 5, 2001.  On October 14, 2015, Toledo-Aguilar was encountered by ICE agents after being arrested in Sioux County, Iowa, for supplying alcohol to an underage person.  Toledo-Aguilarhad been convicted of aggravated assault in the Superior Court of Cobb County, Georgia on July 29, 1999.   

Toledo-Aguilar was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Toledo-Aguilar was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 1-year term of supervised release.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  There is no parole in the federal system.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Fletcher and investigated by HSI and the Enforcement and Removal Office of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Bureau.  

Court file information is available at https//ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-4080.

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Three men and one woman who conspired to distribute methamphetamine were sentenced to federal prison.

Three members of the conspiracy from Fort Dodge, Iowa - Robert Ackerman, 36; Shawn Owen, 37; Deidre Schlachter, 45; and Donald Smith, 42, from Huntington Beach, California, all plead guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

At their respective guilty plea hearings, each admitted their involvement in the conspiracy from about January 2009 and continuing through about December 2013 that distributed more than 500 grams of methamphetamine in the Fort Dodge, Iowa, area.  Smith made arrangements to ship (mail) methamphetamine from California to Iowa to Owen, Schlachter, and Ackerman in exchange for cash being shipped (mailed) by Owens, Schlachter, and Ackerman to Smith in California. On April 25, 2013, law enforcement seized a Fed-Ex overnight envelope (in transit) from Smith to Schlachter.  The Fed-Ex package contained 10.44 grams of 100% pure methamphetamine.

The defendants were sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Ackerman was sentenced to 35 months’ imprisonment; Owen was sentenced to 48 months’ imprisonment; Schlachter was sentenced to 33 months’ imprisonment; and Smith was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment.  Each must pay a special assessment of $100.  Each must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

All defendants are being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until they can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by the Iowa Department of Narcotics Enforcement, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Fort Dodge Police Department, Webster City Police Department, Webster County Sheriff’s Office, Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, Hardin County Sheriff’s Office, and Iowa Falls Police Department. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov.  The case file number is 13-3055.

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A former Controller of a Dubuque company, who embezzled more $340,000 from the company, pled guilty today to one count of wire fraud and one count of filing false tax returns.

In a plea agreement, Michael Schute, age 50, from Dubuque, Iowa, admitted he embezzled the money from the company between 2008 until he was fired in April 2013.  Schute embezzled the money by writing checks on the company bank account to pay personal credit cards and other bills.  Schute then concealed this conduct by falsifying the company books to make it appear the funds were expended on company debts.  When filing his tax returns for the tax years 2008 through 2013, Schute falsely concealed the funds he received from the embezzlement for his own personal use.  Illegal income is taxable. 

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Schute remains free on bond pending sentencing.  Schute faces a possible maximum sentence of 23 years’ imprisonment, a $500,000 fine, or twice the amount of funds embezzled, $200 in special assessments, and up to four years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney C.J. Williams and was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service and the Dubuque Police Department.

Court file information is available at ttps://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 15-cr-1003-LRR.

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A man who was convicted of multiple fraud, aggravated identity theft, and tax charges in 2013, pled guilty today to attempting to obstruct the federal government’s efforts to forfeit his real property to be used as restitution for his fraud victims.

Randy Beltramea, age 50, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, pled guilty to four counts of attempting to obstruct justice.

At the plea hearing, Beltramea admitted he attempted to impede and hinder the federal government’s efforts to forfeit a real estate development, the proceeds from which were to be used to pay restitution to the victims of his fraud.  Beltramea pled guilty to all four counts of the indictment.  The indictment alleged that Beltramea owned a housing development project near Mt. Vernon, Iowa, called Castlerock Estates, which consisted of approximately 80 acres of land, part of which had been plotted into separate lots with road and utility access. 

In 2013, Beltramea was indicted by a federal grand jury, which charged him with a number of offenses including fraud charges related to obtaining money from people under false pretenses and using the funds for, among other things, funding the Castlerock development.  The indictment gave notice that the United States intended to forfeit, among other property, all of the real property constituting the Castlerock development.  In October 2013, Beltramea pled guilty to eight of the sixteen counts of the indictment.  In December 2013, the court entered a preliminary order of forfeiture on the real property constituting the development.

Unbeknownst to the United States or the court, while the indictment and forfeiture proceedings were pending against Beltramea he sold two lots in the development for approximately $160,000.  He also filed a mortgage, in his mother’s name, on the remaining lots claiming the property had been pledged as collateral for a loan from his mother in excess of $300,000.  This conduct was intended to impede the government’s ability to forfeit the Castlerock development and use the proceeds to pay the victims of his fraudulent conduct.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Beltramea remains in custody pending sentencing.  Beltramea faces a possible maximum sentence of 80 years’ imprisonment, a $1 million fine, $400 in special assessments, and up to 12 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney C.J. Williams and was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service.

Court file information is available at ttps://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-cr-0095-LRR.

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A man who was carrying a stolen firearm in a car pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Michael Hicks, age 25, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of one count of being an unlawful drug user in possession of a firearm.

At the plea hearing, Hicks admitted that in January 2010, at a time when he was an unlawful user of marijuana, he possessed a stolen handgun.  Hicks was a passenger in a car pulled over by police officers during a traffic stop in Benton County, Iowa.  During the traffic stop the sheriff’s deputy discovered a handgun in defendant’s possession.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Hicks remains free on bond pending sentencing.  Hicks faces a possible maximum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $100 in special assessments, and up to three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney C.J. Williams and was investigated by the FBI, the Benton County Sheriff’s Office, and the Cedar Rapids Police Department.  The investigation and prosecution is part of the ongoing operation of the FBI Safe Streets Task Force based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Court file information is available at ttps://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 15-cr-8-LRR.

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Contact: Steve Young

The United States Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa and Iowa’s Motor Vehicle Enforcement (MVE) joined forces at the Flying J Travel Plaza and Road Ranger Truck Stop in Evansdale, Iowa, over the lunch hour on January 30, 2015, to bring awareness to the multi-million dollar criminal enterprise of human trafficking.

President Barack Obama proclaimed January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month.  In his proclamation, he expressed we all should be working together to combat human trafficking, prosecute the perpetrators, and help victims recover and rebuild their lives.  President Obama stated, “We stand with the survivors, advocates, and organizations dedicated to building a world where our people and our children are not for sale.”

US Attorney Kevin W. Techau joined forces with MVE Chief David Lorenzen, at the two truck stops near Waterloo, Iowa, to address the national criminal enterprise of human trafficking, a term for modern-day slavery.  Techau noted, “Human trafficking is a scourge that threatens lives across the globe.  It happens every minute of every day.  Traffickers recruit out of our schools, online, in shopping malls, as well as the streets and other locations.”  He further noted, “These victims are often women and girls pressed into prostitution, but they are also men, women, and children who are ordered to work in restaurants, massage parlors, and private homes for no pay under deplorable conditions.  These vulnerable victims need to be identified and rescued.”

United States Attorneys’ Offices across the country, in partnership with the DOJ’s Human Trafficking Prevention Unit and Child Exploitation and Obscenity Division, have played a significant role in prosecuting human traffickers.  Over 800 cases between fiscal years 2009-2014 were prosecuted for labor and sex trafficking crimes.

In 2009, Truckers Against Trafficking (or TAT), a nonprofit organization, was created as a way to bring education, awareness and empowerment to truck drivers across the nation to spot and report signs of human trafficking.  Truck drivers are often in areas where trafficking can occur.  Being able to spot the signs and knowing how to report suspicious behavior can go a long way in fighting this crime.  TAT Executive Director, Kendis Paris endorses Iowa’s collaborative approach. “Bringing law enforcement and key industry stakeholders together to further awareness and combat trafficking is what our organization is all about,”  Ms. Paris notes that Iowa has set the standard for the rest of the nation with its proactive approach.

Chief Lorenzen serves on TAT’s national board and has been active in addressing this issue within the state. “It was common sense that thrust Iowa into becoming active in fighting this hideous criminal nightmare.  Our officers take this initiative seriously and interact with trucker drivers and concerned citizens daily.”

He highlighted the department’s numerous initiatives that serve as a model around the nation, stressing, “A conversation about fighting human trafficking occurs with every truck driver his 130 officers encounter.” He noted that Iowa’s model includes the distribution of wallet cards and window clings to drivers following each encounter with department officers.   Educational materials are available at rest stops and weigh stations.  TAT’s logo and national hotline number is prominently displayed on the department’s website.  Additionally, last year training for enforcement agencies along the Interstate 80 and 35 corridors was held.  Chief Lorenzen also mentioned that his department has a strong working relationship with the Iowa Motor Truck Association and various motor carriers centering on this initiative.

Techau and Lorenzen pledged to keep this issue on the front burner as they continue their collaborative relationship to educate, investigate, prosecute, and help victims rebuild their lives.

The Truckers Against Trafficking website is a good resource to inform truck drivers and other travelers on the issues involved. 
Visit TAT’s website at:  https://www.truckersagainsttrafficking.org

For more information in this issue you may visit either PSA link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LREG8RYUeFU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x32XMAutyyw

Contact: Steve Young

Two men who conspired to distribute methamphetamine were each sentenced January 26, 2015, to more than 11 years in federal prison.

Isaias Vasquez-Amaya, age 31, of Crystal, Minnesota, received the prison term after a November 13, 2014, guilty plea, and Jose Nicolas Vasquez-Mendez, age 30, of Crystal, Minnesota, received his prison term after an October 10, 2014, guilty plea.  Each pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. 

Information provided by the United States at the sentencing’s and change of plea hearings showed Vasquez-Mendez distributed methamphetamine to confidential informants during his involvement in the conspiracy from February 2014 through August 27, 2014.  Vasquez-Amaya was involved in controlled buys from undercover officers on numerous occasions and was responsible for the distribution of more than 500 grams of actual (pure) methamphetamine.  Both were in possession of more than 600 grams of actual (pure) methamphetamine on August 27, 2014, during a traffic stop.

Vasquez-Amaya and Vasquez-Mendez were sentenced in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Each were sentenced to 135 months’ imprisonment.  Both must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  Vasquez-Amaya was ordered to pay a $200 special assessment and Vasquez-Mendez was ordered to pay a $100 special assessment.  There is no parole in the federal system.

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

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney John Lammers 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 Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Iowa Department of Public Safety Division of Narcotics Enforcement, the Iowa State Patrol, the North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force, and the South Central Drug Investigation Unit out of Minnesota.      

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov.   The case file number is 14-3047.

Contact: Steve Young

A man who was employed by a pork processing plant and oversaw the facility’s wastewater treatment lagoons pled guilty on December 16, 2014, in federal court in Sioux City to knowingly discharging a pollutant thereby resulting in a fish kill.

Michael J. Wolf, age, 57 from Remsen, Iowa, was convicted of one count of discharging pollutant in a water of the United States.

At the plea hearing, Wolf admitted in or about August, 2012, Sioux-Preme Packing Corporation contracted with a company to remove and replace debris from the SPC wastewater treatment lagoons, and that beginning on October 23, 2012 and continuing to October 24, 2012, he discharged the contents of the treatment lagoons (which included pollutants such as biological material and agricultural waste) through a valve, pipe and pump building into a tributary of the West Branch of the Floyd River. Wolf admitted that between October 23 and 24th, 2012, he intentionally and unlawfully discharged approximately 845,000 gallons of untested wastewater and pollutant into the tributary over an 11.5 hour period.

On October 27, 2012, the IDNR Spencer Field Office received reports of cloudy water and stressed fish downstream of the SPC facility and began investigating. Two days later, IDNR investigators observed dead fish and discolored water downstream of the SPC facility.

On November 2, 2012, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Bureau finished conducting their fish kill assessment.  Based on observations by fisheries staff from the confluence of the unnamed tributary and West Branch of the Floyd River, and extending downstream 11.13 miles, fish of various species were killed and more were otherwise negatively affected by the criminal discharge. .

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Donald E. O’Brien will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Wolf remains free on bond previously set pending sentencing.  Wolf faces up to three years’ imprisonment, a fine of not less than $5,000 up to $50,000 per day of violation, $100 in special assessment, and up to one year of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case was investigated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild.  

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-4091.

Contact: Steve Young

A man who used a knife to kill another man on the Meskwaki Nation Settlement pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Jonathan Youngbear, 21, from the Meskwaki Nation Settlement, Iowa, was convicted of one count of second degree murder in “Indian Country.”

In a plea agreement, Youngbear admitted that he stabbed Severn Jefferson twice in the neck and chest with a knife.  Youngbear further admitted that the victim bled to death as a result of the stab wounds.  At the time he stabbed the victim, Youngbear was under the influence of alcohol and also had methamphetamine in his system. 

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Youngbear remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Youngbear faces a possible maximum sentence of up to life imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $100 in special assessments, and five years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Tony Morfitt and Pete Deegan and was investigated by the Meskwaki Nation Tribal Police Department, the Tama County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-00046.

Contact: Steve Young

A man whose attempt at cooking methamphetamine resulted in a fire that damaged several mobile homes in Hiawatha pled guilty on January 27, 2015, in federal court in Cedar Rapids.

Michael Landon Monroe Lala, age 28, from Hiawatha, Iowa, was convicted of attempt to manufacture methamphetamine.

In a plea agreement, Lala admitted that he manufactured methamphetamine many times between April 2012 and May 2014, and that he recruited others to purchase pseudoephedrine for him so he could make meth.  Lala also admitted that on November 13, 2013, he was in the process of cooking meth via the “one-pot” method when the bottle he was using in the manufacturing process tipped over, causing a fire.  A 14-year-old and the owner of the mobile home in Hiawatha where Lala was cooking the meth were also present in the mobile home when the fire started.  The mobile home where the fire started was destroyed, and five neighboring mobile homes were also extensively damaged.  Three of the other damaged mobile homes were occupied at the time of the fire.  One of those residences was occupied by two adults and four minor children, another by one adult, and a the third residence by two adults.

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Lala remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing.  Lala faces a possible maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment, a $1,000,000 fine, $100 in special assessments, and up to a lifetime of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case was investigated by the Hiawatha Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force consisting of the DEA; the Linn County Sheriff's Office; the Cedar Rapids Police Department; the Marion Police Department; the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement; and the Sixth Judicial District Department of Correctional Services, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham.

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is CR14-100-LRR.

Contact: Steve Young

A former postal services employee who stole mail pled guilty January 23, 2015, in federal court in Sioux City.

Danny D. Miller, 55, from Ventura, Iowa, was convicted of theft of mail by a postal services employee.

At the plea hearing, Miller admitted that from about May 2013 through July 2014, while serving as the Postmaster for Forest City, Iowa, he opened mail, specifically pain medication parcels from the Department of Veteran’s Affairs addressed to a Forest City, military veteran.  Miller further admitted to stealing the contents of the packages, namely Oxycodone.    

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Miller remains free on bond previously set pending sentencing.  Miller faces a possible maximum sentence of 5 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $100 in special assessments, and up to one year of supervised release following any imprisonment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jamie Bowers and was investigated by U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov.  The case file number is 14-3051.

Contact: Steve Young

A man who attempted to manufacture methamphetamine near a school, was sentenced on January 26, 2015, to 14 years in federal prison.

Zackery Smock, 37, from Anamosa, received the prison term after a July 1, 2014, guilty plea to one count of attempted manufacture of methamphetamine by a drug felon near a school.

At the guilty plea, Smock admitted that, on March 7, 2014, he attempted to manufacture methamphetamine at a residence in Anamosa.  During the course of his manufacturing, he started a fire at the residence.  The residence was within 1000 feet of St. Patrick’s school in Anamosa.  Evidence at sentencing showed that over 80 separate one-pot methamphetamine cooks were recovered from the basement area where Smock manufactured methamphetamine.  The fire resulted in the total destruction of the residence.   

Smock was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade to 168 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  He must also serve a 6-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Smock 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 Lisa C. Williams and investigated by Anamosa Police Department, Anamosa Fire Department, Iowa Division of State Fire Marshal, and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-cr-57.

Contact: Steve Young

An alien who illegally reentered the United States after being deported and used fraudulent document to obtain employment was sentenced today to two years in federal prison.

Jaime Rodriguez-Andres, also known as Alejandro Govea-Salvador, age 41, a Mexican citizen living in Waterloo, Iowa, received the prison term after an October 10, 2014, guilty plea to one count of illegal reentry into the United States by an aggravated felon, one count of unlawful use of identification documents, and one count of making a false claim to United States citizenship.

At the guilty plea, Rodriguez-Andres admitted he re-entered the United States without permission after being removed from the country on October 6, 2005.  Rodriguez-Andres was convicted on April 6, 2009, in Black Hawk County, Iowa, on forgery and identity theft charges, aggravated felonies, and removed from the United States a second time on September 16, 2009.  Rodriguez-Andres also admitted that he used a Social Security card in someone else’s name in completing an employment verification form to obtain a job in Waterloo.  He also falsely claimed to be a United States citizen on that employment form when he applied for work.  Immigration officials became aware of Rodriguez-Andres illegal return to the United States in July 2014 after Rodriguez-Andres was arrested in Waterloo, Iowa, for assault domestic abuse causing bodily injury.

Rodriguez-Andres was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade to 24 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $300 was imposed.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Rodriguez-Andres 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 Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Enforcement and Removal Operations. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-2034.

Contact: Steve Young

Sioux City brothers have been sentenced to federal prison after they were convicted by a federal jury in Sioux City on August 29, 2014, following a two and one-half day jury trial.

Jamal Dean, 23, of Sioux City, was convicted of conspiracy, felon in possession of a firearm, carjacking, and two counts each of robbery, and twice brandishing a gun in furtherance of a violent crime.  He was found not guilty of one count of carjacking and one count of interstate transport of a stolen vehicle.  His brother, Levon Dean Jr., 25, also of Sioux City, was convicted of conspiracy, felon in possession of a firearm, and two counts each of robbery and possessing a gun in furtherance of a violent crime.  He was found not guilty of both counts of carjacking and one count of interstate transport of a stolen vehicle. One count of interstate transport of a stolen vehicle was dismissed.

Evidence at trial showed the brothers conspired to rob two local drug dealers.  On April 15, 2013, they traveled together from Nebraska to Iowa where they beat and robbed the first drug dealer at gunpoint inside a room at a Sioux City motel and then left with his car, methamphetamine, cash and other items.  On April 24, 2013, the brothers again traveled to Iowa where they beat and robbed a second drug dealer at gunpoint inside his Sioux City home taking his car, methamphetamine, cash and other items.  After both attacks the men retreated back to Nebraska. 

Evidence at the sentencing hearing additionally revealed that while an Iowa arrest warrant was pending for Jamal Dean, he was a passenger in a car that was stopped by Sioux City Police Officer Kevin McCormick.  Dean exited the vehicle and began firing a number of rounds at the officer, one of which struck him in the head.  After this shooting, Dean fled but was captured in Texas traveling south just 70 miles from the Mexican border.  Evidence at sentencing also revealed Dean had assaulted a woman and shot two other men, before shooting Officer McCormick.

Jamal Dean and Levon Dean Jr. were sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Jamal Dean was sentenced to life imprisonment.  Levon Dean was sentenced to 400 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by a life term of supervised release.

There is no parole in the federal system.  Both Jamal Dean and Levon Dean Jr. are being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until they can be transported to a federal prison.

Gregory Gant, Special Agent in Charge of the Kansas City Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives commended the law enforcement collaboration that this case highlights saying, "This case is a powerful example of law enforcement agencies working together to rid our neighborhoods of the most violent criminals that tear at the very fabric of our communities."

Woodbury County Sheriff David A. Drew echoed similar sentiments adding, “Once again Siouxland, in the highest traditions, has pulled together in a unified effort by police and citizens to bring these cases to resolution.  Our goal is to continue this spirit of cooperation, rely upon citizen involvement and continue building upon our open relationships of mutual trust, respect and understanding.”

Kevin W. Techau, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa, added, “One of the United States Department of Justice’s top priorities is helping our federal, state and local law enforcement agencies protect our nation’s communities as safe places where our citizens can live work and raise a family. Violent criminals are a threat to the law-abiding people of our communities. This case is an excellent example of the federal-state-local partnerships working today. The collaboration of all of the agencies involved was pivotal in this case and would not have been possible but for superior working relationships. My office shares great pride with our partners in successfully prosecuting the Dean brothers and bringing them to justice. It should also serve to remind others who break the law that we will continue to work to bring them to justice.”

Douglas Young, Chief of Police, Sioux City Police Department, added, “Today, the Federal Government has fulfilled its obligation to protect its citizens with the sentencing of Jamal Dean.  This was a case of drugs, guns and gangs that has left a trail of victims over the past years.  The successful prosecution of this case is a testament to the partnerships and relationships we have formed with our Federal, State and local agencies over the years".  

The case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a cooperative local, state, and federal program aimed at the enhanced prosecution of gun crimes.  It was investigated by the Sioux City Police Department, South Sioux City Police Department, Woodbury County, Iowa Sheriff Office, Dakota County, Nebraska Sheriff’s Office, The Woodbury County, Iowa County Attorney’s Office, United States Marshal’s Service, Iowa and Texas Departments of Public Safety, Iowa Department of Motor Vehicles, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 13-4082.

Contact: Steve Young

A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine was sentenced January 7, 2015, to ten years in federal prison.

Salvador Guiterrez, 41, from Carroll, Iowa, received the prison term after a July 31, 2014, guilty plea to conspiring to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.

At the guilty plea, Gutierrez admitted his involvement in a conspiracy from 2013 through March 20, 2014 that distributed at least 812 grams of methamphetamine in the Carroll and Denison, Iowa, area.  Gutierrez also admitted his possession of a firearm when he distributed methamphetamine. 

Gutierrez was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Gutierrez was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $200 was imposed.  He must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Gutierrez 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 Jamie Bowers and investigated by the Iowa Department of Narcotics Enforcement, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigations, Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, Carroll, Iowa, Police Department, and the Denison, Iowa, Police Department. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov.  The case file number is 14-3031.

Contact: Steve Young

A man who possessed a firearm after having been convicted of a felony offense was sentenced today to more than 21 years in federal prison.

Billy Douglas Thorne, 58, from Mason City, Iowa, received the prison term after an April 17, 2014, jury verdict finding him guilty of one count of possession of a firearm by a felon. 

The evidence at trial showed that on July 24, 2012, Thorne traded his dog for a .22 caliber rifle which he intended to use to shoot his son.  Fearing that police would arrive and find the gun in his residence, Thorne had others hide the gun in a Mason City park.  After Thorne was arrested on harassment charges, the gun was turned over to the police.  Thorne had previously been convicted in 1997 in the State of Florida of five counts of Burglary of a Dwelling and one count of Armed Burglary, all felony offenses.

Thorne was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Thorne was found to be an Armed Career Criminal and sentenced to 262 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  He must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Thorne 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 Daniel C. Tvedt and investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the Ankeny Police Department, and the Mason City Police Department. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 13-CR-3052.

Contact: Steve Young

A man who unlawfully possessed three rifles, two handguns, and 161 rounds of ammunition was sentenced today to nine years in federal prison.

Mark Harken, 32, from Aplington, Iowa, received the prison term after an August 29, 2014, guilty plea to one count of being a felon and unlawful user of methamphetamine in possession of firearms and ammunition.

At the guilty plea, Harken admitted he was a felon and unlawful user of methamphetamine, and that on April 11, 2014, he possessed five firearms, including a semi-automatic rifle.  Evidence at sentencing showed that Harken, after being pulled over by an Aplington police officer on April 11, 2014, was in possession of the firearms. Following the traffic stop, Harken assaulted the officer by punching him multiple times and by pulling a handgun and pointing it at the officer.  Harken fled from the police in his truck, reaching speeds of up to 95 mph, before eventually driving off road into a wooded area.  Harken was eventually taken into custody after a struggle, during which officers had to use a Taser on him.

Harken was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Harken was sentenced to 108 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $100 was imposed.  He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Harken 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 Anthony Morfitt and investigated by the Aplington Police Department and the Butler County Sheriff’s Office. 
           
Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-CR-3028.

Contact: Steve Young

A Sioux City man was sentenced January 13, 2015, to more than eleven years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, and for illegal possession of a firearm.

Nicholas Howard Juarez, age 31, from Sioux City, received his prison term after a May 21, 2014, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, and to being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Juarez was convicted in 2004 in Dakota County Nebraska District Court for a felony offense, which precluded him from lawfully possessing firearms. 

Information provided by the United States at the sentencing and change of plea hearing showed Juarez’s involvement during the Spring of 2013 through January 14, 2014 in a conspiracy that distributed at least 35 grams of actual (pure) methamphetamine.  Juarez possessed multiple pounds of marijuana and methamphetamine as well as several firearms.   On January 18, 2014, officers arrested Juarez, and during the arrest, seized three small baggies of methamphetamine from the defendant’s shirt pocket.  That same day, a search warrant was executed at the defendant’s residence, and a stolen shotgun and several other firearms and ammunition were seized. 

Juarez was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Juarez was sentenced to 135 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $200 was imposed.  He must also serve a 4-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

Juarez 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 Jack Lammers and investigated by the Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, Iowa, which consists of law enforcement personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration; Sioux City, Iowa Police Department; Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement; 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 the Woodbury County Attorney’s Office.. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 14-4008.

Contact: Steve Young

Three men are headed to federal prison for their roles in a marijuana trafficking organization that brought large amounts of high-priced marijuana from Colorado and California to Iowa.

Jesse Tolen, Shannon Ehlts, and Corey Marx all pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute marijuana and were sentenced today in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.  Tolen had also pled guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering.

• Tolen, 36, from Castella, California, was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment and will report to the Bureau of Prisons on a later date.
  
  
• Ehlts, 38, from Lowden, Iowa, was sentenced to nine months’ imprisonment and will report to the Bureau of Prisons on a later date.

• Marx, 29, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was sentenced to eight months’ imprisonment followed by a two month period of home detention.  Marx is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison

All three must also serve three-year terms of supervised release after their prison terms.  There is no parole in the federal system.          

Tolen, Ehlts, and Marx were the last of twelve people to be sentenced in the conspiracy.  Sentences for the twelve ranged from probation to 46 months’ imprisonment.  The organization was dismantled through a DEA investigation that involved court-authorized wiretaps on multiple cellular phones.

The cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Justin Lightfoot and Matthew Cole, and investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program of the United States Department of Justice.  The DEA Task Force consists of the DEA; the Linn County Sheriff's Office; the Cedar Rapids Police Department; the Marion Police Department; the Iowa City Police Department; and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement.. 

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/ cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file numbers for the twelve sentenced defendants are as follows:  Mark Swanson 14-CR-66; Nels Nelson 14-CR-6; Chad Straub 14-CR-20; Robert and Brenda Leonard 14-CR-37; Tolen 14-CR-39; Matthew Fritz 14-CR-78; Ehlts 14-CR-79; Tyler Scheer 14-CR-82; Marx 14-CR-85; James Allen 14-CR-86; and Cory Kintzel 14-CR-92

Contact: Steve Young

United States Attorney Kevin W. Techau announced today that the Northern District of Iowa collected $3,760,255.36 in criminal and civil actions in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2014 (FY 2014).  Of this amount, $1,611,824.88 was collected in criminal actions and $2,148,430.48 was collected in civil actions. 

Attorney General Eric Holder announced on November 19, 2014 that the Justice Department collected $24.7 billion in civil and criminal actions in FY 2014.

The more than $24 billion in collections in FY 2014 represents nearly eight and a half times the appropriated $2.91 billion budget for the 94 U.S. Attorney’s offices and the main litigating divisions in that same period.

“Every day, the Justice Department’s federal prosecutors and trial attorneys work hard to protect our citizens, to safeguard precious taxpayer resources, and to provide a valuable return on investment to the American people,” said Attorney General Holder.  “Their diligent efforts are enabling us to achieve justice and recoup losses in virtually every sector of the U.S. economy.  And this result shows the fruits of the Justice Department’s tireless work in enforcing federal laws; in protecting the American people from violent crime, national security threats, discrimination, exploitation, and abuse; and in holding financial institutions accountable for their roles in causing the 2008 financial crisis.”   

United States Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa, Kevin W. Techau reinforces the importance of these actions indicating, “These collections are a vital part of our mission to vindicate crime and hold accountable those who wrongfully profit at the expense of the United States.  This office is dedicated to recovering funds for the federal treasury and for victims of federal crime.”

The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims.  The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss.  While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims’ Fund, which distributes the funds to state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.

The largest civil collections were from affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights or environmental laws.  In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Internal Revenue Service, Small Business Administration and Department of Education.

Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Iowa, working with partner agencies and divisions, collected $541,517.00 in asset forfeiture actions in FY 2014.  Forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.

Contact: Steve Young

A couple who conspired to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana were sentenced December 19, 2014, and January 13, 2015, to more than 10 years in federal prison.

Carl Duckett (Kifer), 32, and Jessica Duckett, 28, both from Fort Dodge, Iowa, received the prison term after August and September guilty pleas to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and marijuana.  Carl also pled guilty to possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.  In 2012, Carl and Jessica were each convicted of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance in Iowa.    

At the guilty pleas, both admitted their involvement from 2006 through October 2013 in a conspiracy that distributed at least 15 kilograms of methamphetamine and over 100 pounds of marijuana in the Fort Dodge, Iowa, area. In 2011 during a search warrant at the Duckett residence, law enforcement seized numerous growing marijuana plants, methamphetamine and several firearms.  In 2013, another search warrant was executed and six ounces of methamphetamine, three pounds of marijuana and $9000 was seized from the Duckett residence.   

Both were sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett.  Carl was sentenced to 183 months’ imprisonment.  Jessica was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment.  A special assessment of $200 was imposed for Carl and $100 special assessment for Jessica.  Each must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Both are being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until they can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by the Fort Dodge Police Department, the Webster County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.   

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 13-3046.