(Sioux City)– A Fairmont, Minnesota man has been sentenced on federal gun and firearms charges.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office says 32-year-old Shawn Gaston pled guilty in July of 2022 in U.S. District Court in Sioux City to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute meth, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Evidence at plea and sentencing hearings showed that from February 2020 through October 2021, Gaston and others distributed about 27 pounds of methamphetamine throughout northern Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin. In October 2021, law enforcement in Clay county, Iowa attempted to pull over a vehicle Gaston was driving. It resulted in a high speed pursuit that ended when the vehicle crashed into a creek in Dickinson county. Gaston got out of the vehicle and attempted to dispose of a gun and methamphetamine before being apprehended. The items were found about 20 yards from the crashed vehicle.
Court documents say Gaston was in Iowa to collect some drug money.
Authorities say Gaston also had prior felony convictions that prohibited him from possessing guns.
Gaston was sentenced to nearly 25 years in prison.
