Mendenhall to be sentenced Monday morning

A Newton woman who pleaded guilty to four counts of neglect of a dependent person, as part of a November 2017 heroin distribution bust, will have her sentencing hearing early next week.

Crystal L. Mendenhall, 31, will be sentenced at 9:30 a.m. Monday in room 306. Mendenhall made the guilty plea during a hearing Aug. 8 in Jasper County District Court, Newton Daily News previously reported.

Mendenhall has nine counts outstanding in the case, including five counts of possession of a controlled substance. Mendenhall’s four counts of neglect are all class C felonies, punishable in Iowa by up to 10 years in prison. The charges were part of the aftermath of a heroin distribution bust that took place on the city’s northwest side.

M.I.N.E. Task Force’s east division, with the aid of local law enforcement, arrested six Jasper County residents in the bust at 715 W. Fourth St. N. last year, following the execution of a search warrant. Found at the scene were heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, prescription pills and drug paraphernalia.

Jasper County Lt. Aaron Groves, who serves on the M.I.N.E. Task Force, previously told the Newton Daily News a “bad batch” of heroin was being dealt and used in Newton, causing overdoses. Those people were treated with Narcan, a prescription medicine used to block the effects of opioids.

Mendenhall had the same cache of charges as Tyler Gilbert, 24, of Newton. Gilbert pleaded guilty July 16 to intent to deliver methamphetamine, a class D felony, for his role in the distribution ring. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the case. District Court Judge Randy Hefner also ordered Gilbert to pay a $5,000 fine.

According to reports from the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, Gilbert tried to dump one gram of meth out of his bedroom window as task force officers halting the heroin operation after six related overdoses were reported in the city in a one-week period.

Groves said officers learned Gilbert and Mendenhall were distributing heroin and other controlled substances in Newton.

Groves said the goal for the expedited search warrant was to quickly remove the harmful controlled substances from Newton. Local law enforcement worked on that case for about two months.

Contact Orrin Shawl at 641-792-3121 ext. 6533 or at oshawl@newtondailynews.com