DES MOINES — The former superintendent of Iowa's largest school district, who was detained by immigration agents last week, has been charged in federal court with possessing firearms while in the United States without legal authorization, prosecutors said Oct. 2.
Ian Roberts, who resigned earlier this week as the superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools, was detained on Sept. 26 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents after he was pulled over and allegedly fled from officers. Federal authorities accused Roberts, 54, of lacking legal authorization to reside or work in the United States.
During the arrest, federal agents discovered a loaded handgun that was wrapped in a towel inside the vehicle Roberts was driving, a criminal complaint alleges. Law enforcement also executed a search warrant at Roberts' home, and found three other firearms and multiple firearm magazines, according to the complaint.
The Department of Homeland Security previously said it was referring Roberts to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives for an investigation into how he obtained the gun found in his vehicle.
Roberts was being held at the Woodbury County Jail in Sioux City, about 150 miles northwest of Des Moines, pending deportation by immigration authorities. But on Oct. 2, Roberts was taken into custody by the Department of Justice on a federal warrant for his arrest and was removed from the jail.
