Hector Saldana Castaneda will spend 25 years in prison for a felony delivery of at least 5 grams of methamphetamine

Hector Saldana Castaneda, 41, must serve at least five years of his sentence before he is eligible for parole. District Judge Jeffrey Neary gave the sentence Thursday, said Coleman McAllister, Sioux County attorney.
A search warrant was issued for Saldana Castaneda's house after Northwest Iowa Drug Task Force conducted a controlled drug buy. The confidential informant bought one ounce of crystal meth for $1,000. The Oct. 18 search turned up more meth, drug paraphernalia, plastic bags, a gram scale and $1,620 in cash.Saldana Castaneda will be deported once he finishes his prison term. He was deported in 1996 after being sentenced to 18 months in prison for a cocaine possession conviction in Nebraska.

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Matthew Sheridan, 42, was convicted of making and trying to make at least five grams of pure meth.A resort security guard entered Sheridan’s pool-side room July 20, 2006, and smelled a strong chemical. The guard told two employees he found Sheridan was making meth in the room. Law enforcement was notified.
Officers found a tray with a piece of burned aluminum foil and white powder and a snort tube under a pillow. Two small bags of white powder were found on Sheridan.Officers discovered chemicals, tubing and containers used to make meth, as well as 27 grams of marijuana, two bags with 12.58 grams of meth, several unused bags and a shotgun shell.
He will have four years of supervised release after his prison term.

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Tyrone Sturdivant

Tyrone Sturdivant was convicted by a jury of various drug charges including conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine. He was arrested in January 2005 and sentenced in US District Court to 29 years in prison.
Sturdivant appealed the district court's denial of motions for acquittal and for a new trial.
Prosecutors cross-appealed the court's denial of a sentencing enhancement.
They argued that the defendant's three prior felony drug convictions meant he should have been given a mandatory life sentence.
The 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals found that the district court did err in refusing to apply 1 of the prior convictions.
The federal appeals court sent the case back to the district court for resentencing.

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