Timothy T. Duax U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa
A Mount Vernon, Iowa man has been sentenced to over twelve years in federal prison after pleading guilty to a drug trafficking charge. Brice Aron Horton, 49, received the sentence on August 8, 2025, following his March 10, 2025 guilty plea for possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
On May 26, 2024, officers from the Mt. Vernon-Lisbon Police Department stopped Horton’s vehicle and conducted a search. During the search, officers found 814.9 grams of ice methamphetamine and a loaded pistol. At the time of the incident, Horton was already a convicted felon and was not allowed to possess firearms.
According to a plea agreement, Horton admitted that between May 2023 and May 2024 he was responsible for distributing at least thirteen pounds of ice methamphetamine within the Northern District of Iowa. He also acknowledged distributing one hundred pills containing fentanyl during this period.
Horton was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams in Cedar Rapids. He received a prison term of 147 months and must serve five years of supervised release following his incarceration. There is no parole in the federal system.
The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Jared Manternach and investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) along with the Mt. Vernon-Lisbon Police Department.
