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Press Release

Cedar Rapids Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Selling Meth

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

A man who possessed or distributed over a kilogram of methamphetamine was sentenced on February 19, 2020, to more than twelve years in federal prison.

Nicholas John Gruner, age 38, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after an October 29, 2019 guilty plea to one count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.

At the guilty plea, Gruner admitted that he distributed more than 220 grams of methamphetamine to an individual cooperating with law enforcement on the morning of August 13, 2019.  In the afternoon of August 13, 2019, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop on Gruner’s vehicle and they seized more than 220 grams of methamphetamine.  During a later search of Gruner’s apartment, law enforcement seized more than 580 grams of methamphetamine, a rifle, ammunition, and other items indicative of drug distribution.

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

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

The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Dillan Edwards and was investigated by 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; and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement.

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

The case file number is 19-CR-85.

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Updated February 21, 2020

Topic
Drug Trafficking