Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

DES MOINES, IA - On February 10, 2014, Harry Lincoln Garrison, III, a 26 year-old resident of Des Moines, Iowa, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Stephanie M. Rose to 132 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of cocaine, announced United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt, United States Attorney. As part of the same case, Matthew Steven Steward, age 21, of Des Moines, Iowa, was sentenced to 120 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of cocaine and for carrying a firearm during and in relation to drug trafficking, and Elizabeth Heather Neilson, age 30, of Des Moines, Iowa, was sentenced to 60 months for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute at least 500 grams of cocaine. The indictment was filed on March 27, 2013, and all three entered their guilty pleas on October 28, 2013.

This case stems from an undercover investigation conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Des Moines Police Department wherein a confidential informant made several illicit purchases of drugs and firearms from Garrison, Steward and others. In the same case, Allen Fortner Jr., Brien Leroy Watson Jr., and Orlando Paul Valadez have also pleaded guilty, and are scheduled for sentencing at a later date.

The investigation was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms and the Des Moines, Iowa, Police Department. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

# # #