Cedar Rapids Man Convicted by Jury After Four-Day Trial of Distributing at Least 50 Pounds of Methamphetamine
A Cedar Rapids man who distributed a significant amount of methamphetamine and heroin was convicted on November 5, 2026, after a four-day trial in federal court in Cedar Rapids, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa announced. Henry Watkins, age 52, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was convicted of one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and heroin and one count of distribution of methamphetamine. The verdict was returned following about ninety minutes of jury deliberations.
The evidence at trial showed that, between January 2020 and March 2022, Watkins worked with others to distribute at least 50 pounds of methamphetamine and 100 grams of heroin to individuals in Eastern and Central Iowa. In April 2020, law enforcement officers seized over $20,000 from Watkins at an airport in Arizona after a canine alerted to the odor of a controlled substance on the money. On December 21, 2021, Watkins distributed approximately one pound of methamphetamine to someone in Cedar Rapids.
In late November 2023, Watkins traveled to the Philippines after he learned that he was under investigation. He remained in the Philippines until March 2025, when he was arrested and later deported back to the United States. Sentencing before U.S. District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand will be set after a presentence report is prepared, and Watkins remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshal. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years' imprisonment and a possible maximum of life imprisonment, a $10,000,000 fine, and a term of supervised release of at least five years and up to a lifetime. The case was investigated by HSTF Kansas City and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dillan Edwards and Jennifer Schrauth.
(Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国司法部总部大楼（GSM联邦固定图库）。 / Photo: U.S. Department of Justice headquarters (GSM federal asset library).
