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Fort Dodge man sentenced for meth, gun convictions

SIOUX CITY — A Fort Dodge man has been sentenced to 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to illegal firearm possession and a meth distribution conspiracy.

Matthew Guthrie, 34, received the sentence in federal court Friday after pleading guilty in August to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

According to a press release from the Department of Justice, Guthrie admitted at that plea hearing that he distributed over 500 grams of meth in the Fort Dodge area between January and April 2019. On three occasions, he dealt more than 100 grams of pure meth to people cooperating with law enforcement.

At a subsequent search of Guthrie’s residence, four guns, meth, drug paraphernalia, scales and a drug ledger were seized.

Guthrie was sentenced Friday by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand to 135 months in prison. He must also serve four years of supervised release after prison.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. The DOJ says the evidence-based program, through a broad spectrum of stakeholders, has proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. PSN strategy focuses enforcement efforts on who law enforcement believes to be the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime rates.

The case is also part of Project Guardian, the DOJ’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws, initiated by the attorney general in 2019.

The United States Attorney’s Office prosecuted this case with support from the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Webster County Drug Task Force, Carroll County, Iowa Sheriff’s Office, and the Iowa Division of Criminalistics Laboratory.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Webster County Drug Task Force, Carroll County, Iowa Sheriff’s Office, and the Iowa Division of Criminalistics Laboratory.

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