Cherokee Man Sentenced to 28 Months in Federal Prison for Meth Conviction

A man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine was sentenced on October 23, 2023, in federal court in Sioux City.

Jason Werner, 38, from Cherokee, Iowa, pled guilty on June 6, 2023, to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings showed Werner’s involvement in a conspiracy that distributed at least 1.5 kilograms of methamphetamine from December 2019 through May 2022.  Werner assisted at least seven others in the conspiracy in obtaining about four pounds of methamphetamine and one pound of marijuana from sources in California and Nevada and transporting the drugs in a hidden vehicle compartment to Cherokee, Iowa, for further distribution. 

Sentencing was held before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Werner was sentenced to 28 months’ imprisonment and must serve a three-year term of supervised release following imprisonment.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Werner remains in the custody of the United States Marshal until he can be transported to a federal prison. 

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and was investigated by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program of the United States Department of Justice through a cooperative effort of the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, United States Postal Inspectors, Homeland Security Investigations, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Colorado State Patrol, Iowa DCI Laboratory, and Cherokee Police Department. 

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

The case file number is 22-4066.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.