Sioux City Man to Federal Prison for Illegal Possession of Guns and Ammunition

Chance Rebel Nielsen, 23, from Sioux City, Iowa, was sentenced on June 12, 2023, to 54 months in federal prison for being a prohibited person in possession of firearms and ammunition.  Nielsen was previously convicted of a felony in October 2021.  This conviction prohibited him from possessing a gun or ammunition. 

Nielsen pled guilty on January 31, 2023.  Evidence at the hearings showed that on August 29, 2022, law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle in which defendant was a passenger.  During the stop, a Glock 9mm Luger, .45 ACP, and ammunition were found.  Further investigation showed that, on August 23, 2022, Nielsen was at Scheels in Sioux City where he was observed possessing a Glock 9mm in his waistband.  Nielsen purchased ammunition from Scheels which matched the ammunition found in the vehicle. Scheel’s Loss Prevention Unit provided evidence which was used by law enforcement to obtain a search warrant.  Pursuant to a search warrant on recovered cell phones in this investigation, Nielsen was seen in a video shooting a firearm at a gun range, and text messages in which Nielsen discussed buying and selling firearms and made threats to others were found.  

Sentencing was held before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand.  Nielsen was sentenced to 54 months’ imprisonment and must serve a three-year term of supervised release following imprisonment.  There is no parole in the federal system.  Nielsen remains in custody of the United States Marshal until he can be transported to a federal prison. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).  PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts.  PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood and was investigated by the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office, Le Mars Police Department, 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 22-4077.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.