SIOUX CITY – A Minnesota woman and an Iowa man who conspired to distribute methamphetamine in Iowa were sentenced to four and eleven years respectively in federal prison.
Jillian Preston, 36, from Herron Lake, Minnesota, received the prison term on July 9, 2015, after an April 17, 2015, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Todd Daugherty, 52, from Spencer, Iowa, received the prison term on May 26, 2015, after a February 19, 2015, guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
At their guilty pleas, Preston and Daugherty each admitted that from 2013 through May 2014 they were involved in a conspiracy that distributed more than 50 grams of actual (pure) methamphetamine in the Spencer (Lakes), Iowa area. Preston obtained ¼ to ½ pound quantities from sources in Minnesota for distribution in Iowa. Daugherty obtained one ounce to ¼ pound quantities from Preston for further redistribution in Iowa. And four ounces of methamphetamine was seized from Daugherty (after he had received it from Preston) in a Minnesota traffic stop.
Preston and Daugherty were sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett. Preston was sentenced to 48 months’ imprisonment. Daugherty was sentenced to 132 months’ imprisonment. Each must pay a special assessment of $100 and each must also serve a 5-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system. Preston and Daugherty are being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until they can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn S. Wehde and investigated by Clay County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Great Lakes Drug Task Force, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and the Minnesota State Patrol.
