DAVENPORT, IA – Five people, all from the Quad Cities area, have now been sentenced to federal prison for their role as members of a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking organization in Davenport. Those sentenced as part of this drug conspiracy include:
• Theodore Thomas Browne, age 50, was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Karley Ann Smith, age 29, was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Donnie Wayne Robinson, age 36, was sentenced to 25 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release;
• Joshua Steven Ennis, age 40, was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment and five years of supervised release; and
• Joshua John Paarmann, age 32, was sentenced to 420 months of imprisonment and five years of supervised release.
In fall 2020, law enforcement identified eight individuals as members of a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking organization in Davenport. Paarmann and Robinson served as the conspiracy’s methamphetamine sources of supply. Robinson was arrested in November 2020 in possession of a firearm and approximately 40 grams of methamphetamine. Ennis was arrested in December 2020 in possession of a firearm and approximately 13 grams of cocaine. Smith was arrested in December 2020 in possession of more than 100 grams of methamphetamine. Paarmann was arrested in December 2020 in possession of more than 1,400 grams of methamphetamine, $5,800 of drug proceeds, a firearm, and numerous rounds of ammunition.
Paarmann, Lira, and Ennis were released from jail in early 2021. Ennis committed a burglary in which he stole two firearms. Law enforcement re-arrested Ennis in March 2021 in possession of three firearms, including the two stolen during the burglary. Browne recruited Paarmann and Lira to sell methamphetamine for him upon their release in February 2021. In March 2021, Paarmann and Nelson also made a trip to Colorado to transport methamphetamine back to Iowa for Browne. They were arrested upon their return to Scott County in possession of more than 400 grams of methamphetamine.
In total, the conspiracy was responsible for trafficking more than 2.5 kilograms of methamphetamine to the Quad Cities between July 2020 and March 2021.
Browne pleaded guilty on March 9, 2022; Smith pleaded guilty on March 22, 2022; Nelson pleaded guilty on March 31, 2022; Robinson pleaded guilty on April 12, 2022; Ennis pleaded guilty on May 9, 2022; and Paarmann was found guilty on May 25, 2022, following a jury trial.
In June 2022, co-defendant Chelsey Lira was sentenced to 180 months in prison. In August 2022, co-defendant Taylor Graeber was sentenced to 120 months in prison and Robert Nelson was sentenced to 168 months in prison.
United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Davenport Police Department, Drug Enforcement Agency, Quad Cities Metropolitan Enforcement Group, Iowa State Patrol, and Scott County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case.