Brian Joaquin Alvarado, Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine, Iowa 2025

A California man was sentenced to life in federal prison for his role in a large-scale methamphetamine trafficking operation in the Des Moines area.

Brian Joaquin Alvarado, 40, was the leader of the organization, which sold significant amounts of methamphetamine in the Des Moines area and transported firearms to California, according to public court documents.

Alvarado, who was serving a prison sentence in California, orchestrated and coordinated shipments of methamphetamine and firearms with the assistance of at least five co-defendants, including his then 18-year-old son.

In July 2025, a jury convicted Alvarado of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine following a two-day trial.

The co-defendants were sentenced as follows:

• Brian Crimson Alvarado, 20, was sentenced to 100 months in federal prison, followed by a five-year term of supervised release, on November 5, 2025.
• Jose Martine Alejo Galan, 29, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison, followed by a five-year term of supervised release, on February 27, 2025.
• Linda Roseanne Gonzalez Gayton, 37, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, followed by a five-year term of supervised release, on August 28, 2025.
• Gregory Paul Shiner, 25, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison, followed by a five-year term of supervised release, on November 21, 2025.
• Kassianne Kay Timm, 30, was sentenced to a time-served sentence, followed by a three-year term of supervised release, on December 18, 2024.

Alvarado will serve his life sentence in a federal prison with no possibility of parole.

The case was investigated by the Iowa Department of Public Safety – Division of Narcotics Enforcement and United States Postal Inspection Service, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jon Holscher.

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