Sioux City Woman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Lying on Firearm Purchase Form

Christen Williams, 35, from Sioux City, Iowa, was sentenced today to 10 months in federal prison for making false statements during the purchase of a firearm.  Williams received the prison term after a December 5, 2022, guilty plea.

Evidence at the hearing established that between August 23 and 24, 2021, Williams purchased three firearms from Fleet Farm in Sioux City.  Williams falsely indicated on the purchase forms that she was the intended recipient when she was purchasing the firearms on the behalf of another.  These firearms were later recovered at three separate crime scenes over the next 46 days, one of which was a drive-by shooting.   

Williams was sentenced in federal court in Sioux City, Iowa, by United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand to 10 months’ imprisonment.  She must also serve a 1-year term of supervised released following the prison term.  There is no parole in the federal system.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kraig R. Hamit and was investigated by 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 22-4079.  Follow us on Twitter @USAO_NDIA.