Arkansas Man Found Guilty Of Crack Cocaine Conspiracy

A man who conspired to distribute crack cocaine was convicted by a jury September 11, 2013, after a three-day trial in federal court in Sioux City.

Jeffery Thompson, 39, originally from Osceola, Arkansas, but residing in Sioux City, Iowa, was convicted of one count of conspiring to distribute crack cocaine and one count of distributing crack cocaine. The verdict was returned following about three hours of jury deliberations.

The evidence at trial showed Thompson was involved in a conspiracy from about 2008 and continuing through about 2011 that distributed 280 grams or more of crack cocaine. Evidence also showed that on or about June 18, 2010, in Sioux City, Iowa, Thompson distributed crack cocaine to an individual cooperating with law enforcement. Thompson has been previously convicted of four prior felony drug offenses from 2001 to 2013.

Sentencing before United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Thompson remains in custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. On the conspiracy conviction, Thompson faces a mandatory minimum sentence of life imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of a $20,000,000 fine, a special assessment of $100. On the distribution conviction, he faces the following maximum penalties, up to 30 years’ imprisonment without the possibility of parole; a fine of not more than $2,000,000; a mandatory special assessment of $100; and a term of supervised release of at six years to life.

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

Court file information is available at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl. The case file number is 12-4081.