Candy Store Owner Gets Six Years For Crack Sales

(CN) - A man who sold crack cocaine out of his Dubuque, Iowa, candy store was sentenced Wednesday to just under six years in federal prison.

Dwayne Howard, owner of Wayne's Candy in Dubuque, pleaded guilty on October 6, 2014, to one count of distribution of crack cocaine near a playground.

In his plea agreement with federal prosecutors, Howard admitted to selling crack cocaine to an undercover police officer on multiple occasions in January and February 2014. All but one of the sales took place inside his business, the authorities said.

As described in court documents, used drug money to fund his legitimate candy business and used his store inventory to facilitate his drug sales.

As an example, federal prosecutors pointed to two undercover purchases, in which Howard told the officer to take items from the shelf in order to make the transaction look "legit." Investigators noticed that the business did not maintain normal business hours, and bank records showed that the business carried a $5.00 bank account balance.

During a search of the business, investigators discovered little to no money in the cash register. The candy store was located within 1,000 feet of two separate playgrounds, the court documents said.

In addition to jail time, U.S. District Judge Linda Reade also sentenced Howard to a 6-year term of supervised release and assessed him $100. He is not eligible for parole.

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