Drug User who Bought Guns for His Dealer Sentenced to Federal Prison

A man who bought two firearms for his drug dealer was sentenced on June 10, 2026, to more than two years in federal prison.

Conner Scott Nye, age 27, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, received the prison term after a January 12, 2026, guilty plea to one count of false statement during purchase of firearm.

Information from Nye's plea and sentencing hearings showed that Nye bought two guns for his drug dealer in 2024. Nye lied about his drug use and falsely stated that he was buying the guns for himself. Instead, Nye was really buying the guns for his drug dealer. Nye was a user of and addicted to opiates, including heroin. His drug dealer subsequently sold one of the guns after having it equipped with a machinegun conversion device.

Nye was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams. Nye was sentenced to 27 months' imprisonment. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system. Nye is being held in the United States Marshal's custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kyndra Lundquist and investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Court file information at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.plLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link..

The case file number is 25-CR-0026.