Nabbed with guns and weed, Manly drug user sent to prison

SIOUX CITY – A Manly drug user toting a holstered gun caught by cops when his car ran out of gas is headed to federal prison.

Cory Allen More, age 33, from Manly, Iowa, received a 2-year prison term on October 22, 2024, after a June 3, 2024, guilty plea to one count of possession of a firearm by a drug user.

In a plea agreement, More (pictured at top) admitted that on October 23, 2023, his vehicle ran out of gas in Clear Lake, Iowa. A Clear Lake police officer saw More pull his vehicle over to the side of the road. The officer made contact with More while he was outside of his vehicle near the engine bay where he had just opened the hood. At that time, the officer observed 2 marijuana baggies with a green leafy substance on the ground between More’s feet and the officer’s feet. The officer seized the two baggies which were found to contain marijuana. More also had a handgun in a holster on his belt in plain view of the officer. On October 27, 2023, law enforcement executed a search warrant at More’s residence in Manly, Worth County, Iowa, and seized marijuana, scales, drug paraphernalia, and an additional 16 firearms and ammunition.

More was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand. More was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 3-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

More was released on the bond previously set and is to surrender to the Bureau of Prisons on a date yet to be set.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN). PSN is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Fletcher and was investigated by the Clear Lake Police Department, Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office, Manly Police Department, Worth County Sheriff’s Office, Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Iowa State Patrol, Cerro Gordo County Attorney’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Iowa Division of Criminalistics Investigations Laboratory, and United States Marshal’s Service.