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Storm Lake man sentenced for federal meth, gun charges

SIOUX CITY — A Storm Lake man was sentenced Thursday to more than 10 years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine while possessing guns, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa.

Jacob Hernandez, 27, received the sentence after a Sept. 16 guilty plea to two charges: conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

In a plea agreement, he admitted to his involvement in a conspiracy that distributed more than four pounds of meth in the Storm Lake and Fonda areas between January and March 2020. In February and March, law enforcement made three controlled drug purchases of meth from him, the news release said.

In March, officers executed a search warrant at Hernandez’s home, where they seized two guns, about two ounces of meth, over $5,000 in cash, drug trafficking materials, two bullet proof vests, marijuana, drug ledgers and various ammunition.

Hernandez was sentenced in Sioux City to 10 years, five months and 29 days in federal prison by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Leonard T. Strand. He must also serve a four-year term of supervised release after his prison sentence is completed.

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