DES MOINES, IA – A Judge has sentenced a man from Des Moines to serve 20-years in prison, on drug and weapon charges. The sentence was handed down Monday, against 34-year-old Michael Joseph Wilson, for his role in crimes that include: conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and MDMA; possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime; attempt to possess contraband in prison; and violation of supervised release.

In May 2021, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Wilson’s Des Moines residence. Officers found methamphetamine, heroin, MDMA, and a loaded revolver. At the time, Wilson was on federal supervised release for an Indiana firearm conviction. While in the Polk County Jail awaiting sentencing, Wilson worked with others in an attempt to get contraband, specifically K2, into the jail by imitating legal mail.

At sentencing, the Court sentenced Wilson to: 120 months for conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, 60 months (5-years) for possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, 12 months for attempting to possess contraband in prison, and 48 months (2-years) for violating his supervised release. Each sentence must be served consecutively, for a total of term of 240 months in prison.

The investigation was conducted by the Des Moines Police Department, United States Marshals Service, and Polk County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by the U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.