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Press Release

Colorado Man Pleads Guilty to Assaulting a Congressman

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Iowa

A Colorado man pled guilty on September 23, 2019, in United States District Court in Sioux City.

Blake Gibbins, 27, from Lafayette, Colorado, pled guilty to one count of assaulting a member of congress. At his guilty plea hearing, and in a plea agreement, Gibbins admitted that on March 22, 2019, at the Mineral City Mill & Grill in Fort Dodge, Iowa, he approached a table where U.S. Congressman Steve King and others were seated and assaulted Congressman King by intentionally throwing a cup of water on him. 

Sentencing before Chief United States Magistrate Judge Kelly Mahoney will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Gibbons faces a possible maximum sentence of not more than one year imprisonment, a $100,000 fine, and up to 5 years’ probation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Timothy T. Duax and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Fort Dodge Police Department, and the United States Capitol Police. 

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

The case file number is CR19-3033-LTS.

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Updated September 24, 2019

Topic
Violent Crime