A man working a clean-up crew for the historic June 2024 flooding in
Spencer, Iowa was sentenced Tuesday (July 16) to more than 3 years in federal prison.
Hector Benavidez, age 38, from Donna, Texas, received the prison term after
a February 12, 2024, guilty plea to one count of possession of firearms by a felon
and one count possession of stolen firearms.
Evidence in the case revealed, during a gun audit at a Spencer store, two
firearms were missing. Law enforcement and the stores loss prevention personnel
discovered that Benavidez had been hired by a cleaning crew to help clean up after
the 2024 flooding. This crew had access to the room where the firearms were
located and stored. When Benavidez was confronted by law enforcement, he
admitted to taking the firearms two days prior and stated they were with his
belonging in the hotel room he was staying in. Law enforcement was able to locate
and recover the firearms during a search of the hotel room. Benavidez was
previously convicted of felony aggravated robbery in Texas.
Benavidez was sentenced in Sioux City by United States District Court Judge
Leonard T. Strand to 42 months’ imprisonment. He must also serve a 2-year term
of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal
system.
Benavidez is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can
be transported to a federal prison.
The case was investigated by Spencer, Iowa Police Department, Clay County,
Iowa Sheriff’s Department and the United States Department of Justice – Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, (ATF). This case was prosecuted by
Assistant United States Attorney Forde Fairchild.
