Galva Woman Sentenced to Over 11 Years for Fentanyl Distribution

Galva, Iowa — In a grim turn of justice, Braleigh Schossow, a 25-year-old resident of Galva, Iowa, has been sentenced to more than 11 years in federal prison for her role in distributing over 100,000 fentanyl pills. The sentence was handed down on July 10, 2025, following a guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl.

Schossow’s reign of terror began in December 2020 and extended until February 2024. During this period, she funneled counterfeit pills stamped with “M30,” containing deadly fentanyl, from sources in Minnesota into Iowa and Nebraska. Tragically, the distribution spree led to a fatality when some of these pills were unknowingly distributed to an individual who overdosed.

The evidence against Schossow was overwhelming. In 2023, during a search warrant at her residence in Fort Dodge, law enforcement uncovered over 7,000 fentanyl pills, cocaine, $72,000 in cash, and a loaded handgun.

Sentenced to 141 months’ imprisonment by United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand, Schossow must also serve a five-year term of supervised release following her prison term. There is no parole in the federal system, leaving little hope for early freedom.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick T. Greenwood and investigated by the Tri-State Drug Task Force, a multi-agency team that includes personnel from various law enforcement agencies. This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) initiative aimed at dismantling criminal organizations that threaten national security.

For more information about the OCDETF Program and the case file, visit https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF and https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl, respectively. Follow the United States Attorney’s Office Northern District of Iowa on X @USAO_NDIA for updates.

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