Lang
12/15/19
A third suspect has been charged in connection with a Coralville drug distribution case.
42-year-old Carlos Morris of Mason City was booked into the Johnson County Jail just after 7:15 Thursday night on a Controlled Substance Violation. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 25 years in prison.
Coralville Police say Morris was staying at a residence in the Western Hill Estates manufactured housing community on 2nd Street when they executed a search warrant on April 25th. They found approximately 30 grams of methamphetamine, digital scales, marijuana, drug paraphernalia and packaging materials.
The resident owner, 49-year-old Joy Casper, allegedly admitted to being a meth user. A subsequent investigation of phone records indicated that Casper knew other people in the residence were storing narcotics for sale, and she was charged with Keeping Premises for Controlled Substances, an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by a maximum prison sentence of two years.
A third suspect, 25-year-old Mercedes Hadnot of Hollywood Court, was arrested last month for shoplifting at Scheel’s in the Coral Ridge Mall. Like Morris, Hadnot was allegedly living at Casper’s residence at the time of the April police raid. Text messages between Morris and Hadnot showed they had been coordinating the distribution of drugs.
Hadnot is charged with a Controlled Substance Violation and 5th Degree Theft. If convicted, she faces a maximum of over 25 years in prison.
Hadnot was also arrested in August after allegedly stealing two different motor vehicles in Iowa City.