A Fort Dodge man is found guilty in federal court on drug charges. A jury deliberated about 50 minutes before finding 41-year-old Joseph Tyler McDonald guilty of one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
Evidence at the trial showed that McDonald was receiving packages containing meth shipped from California that he then distributed in the Fort Dodge area. Law officers intercepted one package that contained half a pound of ice methamphetamine, and McDonald admitted to having received eight ounces of methamphetamine and eight ounces of cocaine by mail.
McDonald was previously convicted of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school and possession with intent to distribute cocaine base. McDonald faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a possible maximum life sentence.