Shaquandis Thurmond, Escape From Federal Custody, Iowa 2019

Iowa Man Pleads Guilty to Escaping Federal Custody

Cedar Rapids, IA - Shaquandis Thurmond, a 25-year-old man from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has pleaded guilty to escaping from federal custody. The incident occurred on August 26, 2018 when Thurmond, who was in federal custody at the Gerald R. Hinzman Center, failed to return to the facility after attending religious services.

Thurmond was previously convicted of possessing an unregistered short-barreled shotgun, which led to his supervised release sentence. He was being held at the Gerald R. Hinzman Center pursuant to a federal court order. Thurmond's escape from custody was discovered when he was arrested on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa on March 18, 2019.

According to the plea agreement, Thurmond admitted to leaving the facility without permission and failing to return. He faces a possible maximum sentence of 5 years' imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000, and 3 years of supervised release following any imprisonment. Thurmond also agreed that any term of imprisonment will be imposed consecutively to his supervised release revocation sentence.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Reinert with the assistance of the United States Marshals Service, the Northern Iowa Fugitive Task Force, and the University of Northern Iowa Police Department.

Thurmond remains in the custody of the United States Marshal pending sentencing. Sentencing will be set after a presentence report is prepared by the court.

The case file number is CR-19-00035 and can be accessed at https://ecf.iand.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/login.pl.

Follow the United States Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Iowa on Twitter at @USAO_NDIA for the latest updates on this case and other federal cases in Iowa.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndia/pr/escape-halfway-house-leads-additional-federal-conviction