Cedar Rapids man sentenced to over 19 years for meth trafficking

CEDAR RAPIDS — A Cedar Rapids man who conspired with others to distribute pounds of methamphetamine was sentenced to more than 19 years in federal prison last week.

Henry Wilke Eilders, 43, pleaded guilty Oct. 6 in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to distribute meth and possession with intent to distribute meth.

Court documents state that during a search of Eilders’ home in March 2020, officers found over 800 grams of meth, a firearm and $63,151 in cash. Eilders later admitted to selling 104 pounds of the drug during the previous year.

Eilders was charged with George Ashby, 60, also of Cedar Rapids. Court documents state the two oversaw dealers, collected money and purchased large amounts of meth from another man, Corey Lowery, 42, of Burlington. Lowery was charged in the conspiracy in February.

The large-scale drug ring started in August 2018 and ended in March 2020, according to court documents filed in the Lowery case. Lowery and Ashby haven’t been convicted and their trials are pending.

U.S. District Judge C.J. Williams sentenced Eilders to 230 months in prison. He also ordered him to be on supervised release for five years after his prison term and pay $12,176 in attorney fees.

Eilders will remain in U.S. Marshals Service custody until he can be taken to an assigned federal prison.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Nydle and investigated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force program of the U.S. Department of Justice. The task force is a cooperative effort by the Cedar Rapids and Marion police departments, the FBI, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

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