United States Attorneys Office Western District of Missouri (Press Release)
July 24, 2013
(Follow-up La Iguana Meth Bust)
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that the manager of the La Iguana Mexican Restaurant in Branson, Mo., has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges related to drug trafficking and illegally possessing firearms.
Jose Antonio Garcia-Gonzalez, 39, of Branson, was charged in a two-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Springfield on Tuesday, July 23, 2013. Garcia-Gonzalez is the manager of the La Iguana Mexican Restaurant in Branson.
The federal indictment alleges that Garcia-Gonzalez possessed 500 grams or more of methamphetamine on July 16, 2013, with the intent to distribute. The indictment also alleges that Garcia-Gonzalez was an illegal alien in possession of several firearms. Garcia-Gonzalez allegedly possessed a Jennings Jimenez Arms 9mm semi-automatic firearm, a KelTek 9mm semi-automatic firearm, a Springfield Armory 9mm semi-automatic firearm, a Spikes Tactical AR-15 (7.62X39) rifle and ammunition, all of which was seized by law enforcement officers from his residence on July 16, 2013.
Dickinson cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Randall D. Eggert. It was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection Unit, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Branson, Mo., Police Department and the Missouri Department of Revenue.
------------------------U.S Attorney Tammy Dickinson Profile
U.S. Attorney Tammy Dickinson is the top-ranking federal law enforcement official in the Western District of Missouri, which includes Kansas City, St. Joseph, Columbia, Jefferson City, and Springfield. She oversees a staff of 127 employees, including 64 attorneys and 63 non-attorney support personnel.
The office is responsible for prosecuting federal crimes in the district, including crimes related to terrorism, public corruption, child exploitation, firearms, and narcotics. The office also defends the United States in civil cases and collects debts owed to the United States.
Dickinson, a Kansas City, Mo., native, has been a trial attorney her entire legal career. She was the Chief Trial Assistant for the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office from 2002 until her appointment as U.S. Attorney in January 2013, after working as an assistant prosecutor in that office beginning in 1998.
Dickinson received her J.D. in 1998 from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law and her B.A. in 1989 from Webster University. She is a member of the Missouri Bar Association and the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association
