Sioux City Woman Sentenced to 14 Years for Meth Conspiracy Involving Sales Near Two City Parks
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa announced that April Nikkel, 37, of Sioux City, in Woodbury County, Iowa, was sentenced on October 29, 2026, in federal court in Sioux City to 168 months (14 years) in federal prison. Nikkel pleaded guilty on May 18, 2026, to one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of distributing methamphetamine within 1,000 feet of a protected location.
Evidence at the plea and sentencing hearings showed that from January 2025 through November 2025, Nikkel was involved in a conspiracy that distributed more than three pounds of methamphetamine. On at least three occasions she distributed, and helped another distribute, a total of over 190 grams of pure methamphetamine to individuals cooperating with law enforcement. Those distributions occurred within 1,000 feet of Fairmount City Park and Cecillia City Park in Sioux City, both protected locations under federal law.
United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand sentenced Nikkel to 168 months' imprisonment and eight years of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. Nikkel remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service until she can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by the Tri-State Drug Task Force based in Sioux City, whose members include the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Sioux City Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, the Woodbury County Sheriff's Office, the South Sioux City, Nebraska, Police Department, the Nebraska State Patrol, the Iowa National Guard, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, the U.S. Marshals Service, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Woodbury County Attorney's Office. The case file number is 25-4063. (Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于爱荷华州 Woodbury County 县治 Sioux City 的 Woodbury County 法院大楼（资料图）。照片：Ammodramus 摄，CC0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Woodbury County Courthouse in Sioux City, Iowa (file photo). By Ammodramus, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
