A man who sold crack cocaine in Cedar Rapids for a year was sentenced on March 27, 2018, to more than 15 years in federal prison.

Soy Franklin, age 36, originally from Chicago, Illinois, received the prison term after a November 6, 2017, guilty plea to distribution of cocaine base near a protected location.

In a plea agreement, Franklin admitted that he sold crack cocaine in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, from July 2016 to July 2017.  Franklin further admitted that he sold crack cocaine to a confidential police informant on five separate occasions.  On two occasions, Franklin sold crack cocaine while near an elementary school. 

Franklin was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge Linda R. Reade.  He was sentenced to 188 months’ imprisonment.  Franklin must also serve a six-year term of supervised release after the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Franklin 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 Drew O. Inman and investigated by the Cedar Rapids Police Department, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.  Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.  The case file number is 17-CR-40.

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