Sioux City, Iowa — A Hawarden man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine has pleaded guilty in federal court in Sioux City.
According to the US Attorney’s Office, 29-year-old Jose Duenas-Topete of Hawarden was convicted of one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of distributing methamphetamine.
The US Attorney’s Office tells us that at the plea hearing, Duenas-Topete admitted that from January 2020 until April 2, 2022, he and others in the conspiracy distributed at least 4.5 kilograms of pure methamphetamine in the Sioux City area. On April 2, 2022, law enforcement conducted a controlled drug buy operation from Duenas-Topete and his co-conspirators. They say Duenas-Topete distributed over 3 kilograms of pure methamphetamine in exchange for $5,000. Law enforcement conducted a traffic stop of the vehicle in which Duenas-Topete was a passenger and seized approximately a pound of methamphetamine near where he was sitting. Duenas-Topete further admitted that he received four shipments, each containing five to six pounds of methamphetamine from sources in Mexico to distribute in the Sioux City and Plymouth County areas.
Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared. On each conviction, Duenas-Topete faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a possible maximum sentence of life imprisonment, a $10 million fine, and at least five years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
