CEDAR RAPIDS — A Mason City man whose involvement in a local gun shop burglary led federal investigators to uncover the sexual exploitation of children has been sentenced to 22 years in federal prison.
Parker Jon Thompson, 20, of Mason City, received the sentence on October 2, 2026, after pleading guilty April 2 to sexual exploitation of children, possession of child pornography, and possession of a stolen firearm.
Gun shop burglary opened door to disturbing discoveries
In June 2025, Thompson helped friends plan a burglary at a Mason City gun shop. According to evidence presented at federal court hearings, his associates stole several guns and gave at least two of the weapons to Thompson.
As NorthIowaToday.com reported on June 6, 2025, Mason City police responded to a burglary alarm at Hart Brothers Weaponry, 613 South Federal Avenue, around 1:24 a.m. Officers found an open front door and a smashed display case with firearms missing.
Investigators subsequently searched four Mason City residences and two vehicles, recovering seven handguns, including six stolen in the burglary. Thompson, then 19, was among four suspects identified in the original local investigation, facing state allegations of conspiracy to commit a nonforcible felony and first-offense trafficking in stolen weapons.
Phone search exposes child exploitation
While investigating the stolen firearms, officers searched Thompson’s phone and discovered child sexual abuse material. Further investigation established that Thompson had recorded multiple children engaged in sexually explicit conduct and had asked a child to send recordings depicting sex acts.
The case ultimately became a federal child exploitation prosecution. NIT reported Thompson’s federal guilty plea in April 2026. At that hearing, prosecutors described exploitation involving minors between March 2024 and September 2025.
Federal judge imposes 264-month sentence
United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams sentenced Thompson in Cedar Rapids to 264 months, or 22 years, in federal prison. The judge also ordered a 10-year term of supervised release following imprisonment.
There is no parole in the federal prison system, although federal good-conduct credit and other applicable sentencing rules can affect time served.
Thompson remained in United States Marshals Service custody awaiting transfer to a federal prison.
Federal and local agencies investigated
Assistant United States Attorneys Devra T. Hake and Kyndra Lundquist prosecuted the case. The investigation involved the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the FBI; Mason City Police Department; Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office; Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation; and Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement.
The prosecution was brought under Project Safe Childhood, the Justice Department’s nationwide initiative against child sexual exploitation, and was also identified as part of Operation Take Back America.