Timothy T. Duax U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa
Daniel Smith, a 38-year-old resident of Fort Dodge, Iowa, has been sentenced to federal prison for illegal possession of firearms. The sentencing took place on October 8, 2025, in federal court in Sioux City. Smith had previously pleaded guilty on May 20, 2025, to one count of illegal possession of firearms.
Smith's prior convictions include Unauthorized Possession of Offensive Weapons in 2017 and Dominion/Control of Firearm/Offensive Weapon by a Felon in 2022, both in Iowa. These convictions legally barred him from possessing any firearms.
According to evidence presented during the plea and sentencing hearings, Smith was found in possession of three firearms—a .22 rifle, a .410 shotgun, and a 16-gauge shotgun—in November 2024. The firearms were given to him by another individual. Law enforcement responded to Smith’s residence on November 16, 2024, after receiving a report about shots being fired and observed signs that a shotgun had been discharged at the scene. On November 21, 2024, officers executed a search warrant at his home and seized the three firearms.
Smith admitted that he received the weapons and had fired two of them to test their functionality.
