Garner Woman Pleads Guilty to Meth and Heroin Charges

A woman who conspired to distribute methamphetamine and heroin pled guilty June 1, 2023, in federal court in Sioux City.

Brook Paulsen, 40, from Garner, Iowa, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and heroin.

At the plea hearing, Paulsen admitted that during the course of the conspiracy, October 2020 through December 2021, she and others participated in the distribution of more than 2.4 kilograms of methamphetamine and over one pound of heroin.  Paulsen and a co-defendant admitted they would receive packages of drugs through FedEx and DHL from a source in Mexico to addresses in Minnesota and Iowa for further distribution in Iowa.  Other evidence presented showed that on April 28, 2021, she and a co-defendant distributed methamphetamine to a confidential informant working with law enforcement.          

Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared.  Paulsen was taken into custody of the United States Marshal and will remain in custody pending sentencing.  Paulsen faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and at least three years of supervised release following any imprisonment.

 The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and was investigated by the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, Wright County Sheriff’s Office, Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa DCI Laboratory, and the Rochester Minnesota Police Department. 

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

The case file number is 22-3024.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.