COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa—United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum announced Tuesday that 22-year old Clay Thomas Paulson was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Stephanie M. Rose for Possession of a Firearm while Trafficking Drugs. Paulson was sentenced to 60 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

On October 24, 2016, law enforcement responded to a report of a burglary at a home in Boone, Iowa, where 17 firearms had been stolen. Law enforcement were able to recover latent fingerprints from the burglary matching Paulson. On November 7, 2016, during an investigation into a drug trafficking conspiracy, law enforcement discovered some of the stolen firearms from the burglarized home in Boone. Further investigation led to the information that the firearms had been traded by Paulson for methamphetamine.

This case was investigated by Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, Boone Police
Department, Boone County Sheriff’s Office and Crawford County Sheriff’s Office. The case was
prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

(contributed press release)