COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa says a man from Omaha, NE, was sentenced on August 6th in Council Bluffs U-S District Court, to 72 months (six-years) in federal prison, for possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking. According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, in September, 2024, 41-year-old Rafael Rashad Adams was found by Council Bluffs’ police officers passed out in the driver’s seat of a vehicle with front-end damage near South Expressway and 30th Avenue in Council Bluffs. A search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of approximately 31.5 grams of marijuana, scales, drug packaging material, and a stolen, loaded nine-millimeter pistol and a loaded 15-round magazine. Adams’ criminal history includes convictions for drug possession and distribution, unlawful possession of a firearm, and driving under the influence.

After completing his term of imprisonment, Adams will be required to serve a three-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. The case was investigated by the Council Bluffs Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. The case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make neighborhoods safer for everyone.