A woman who lied to a Deputy United States Marshal about the location of a federal fugitive pled guilty today in federal court in Cedar Rapids.
Vivian Rochelle Weakley, age 28, from Dubuque, Iowa, was convicted of obstruction of justice.
In a plea agreement, Weakley admitted that on April 19, 2016, she knew Antwain Deshaun Spratt was inside her residence in Dubuque when Deputy United States Marshals arrived at the residence looking to arrest Spratt on an outstanding federal arrest warrant. Weakley falsely denied knowing Spratt, and claimed there was no one else in the home. Shortly thereafter, Spratt was found hiding in an upstairs bedroom closet. An unloaded handgun was found in Spratt’s clothes in a hamper right outside the closet.
Sentencing before United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade will be set after a presentence report is prepared. Weakley remains free on bond previously set pending sentencing. Weakley faces a possible maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, $100 in special assessments, and up to 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment.
The case is being investigated by the United States Marshals Service and the Dubuque Police Department, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dan Chatham.
Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.
The case file number is 16-CR-30-LRR.
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Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
