Convicted Waterloo cocaine dealer sentenced to 20 years in prison among 13 people involved in case

On November 2, 2024By Karl

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – A federal judge sentenced a Waterloo man to 20 years in prison for not only being a cocaine dealer but also defrauding the federal government and enlisting 12 other people in his scheme.

A judge handed down the sentence to 40-year-old Parrish Austin on Wednesday. He pleaded guilty on Feb. 13, 2024, to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and one count of wire fraud.

Court hearings revealed that Austin distributed one kilogram of cocaine to a distributor over several months from roughly late 2019/early 2020 until October 5, 2022. Evidence showed this was equivalent to at least 10 kilograms of cocaine at the time.

In May 2021, Austin also applied for and received a Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP, loan worth $18,322. He deposited the money into his bank account in October 2021, then applied for a PPP loan and asked for forgiveness.

The judge also ordered Austin to pay back the money in full as part of the restitution, then serve 5 years of supervised release when he is released from prison.

Documents show Austin would supply cocaine to Justin Cole in Waterloo, who worked with Tavaious Glasper, Chris Roby and others to redistribute the cocaine into the community. Cole, Glasper and Roby are among 12 other people implicated in the case or involved in PPP fraud.

Justin A. Cole was sentenced on March 13, 2024, to 195 months in prison and ordered to pay $20,832 in restitution after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and one count of PPP-related wire fraud.

Tavaious Glasper was sentenced to 120 months in prison on March 11, 2024, after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.

Chris Lee Roby was sentenced to 49 months in prison on March 12, 2024, after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance.

Kiesha Ann Morman was sentenced to 5 years probation and ordered to pay $19,835 in restitution on March 6, 2024, after pleading guilty to a PPP-related wire fraud charge.

Sheila Renee Cole was sentenced to 2 months in prison and ordered to pay $19,583 in restitution on April 10, 2024, after pleading guilty to a PPP-related wire fraud charge.

Shalla Scherrice Cole was sentenced to 7 months in prison and ordered to pay $20,415 in restitution on April 19, 2024, after pleading guilty to PPP-related wire fraud.

Tia Lynette Cole-Sykes was sentenced to 5 years probation on May 1, 2024, and ordered to pay $19,790 in restitution after pleading guilty to a PPP-related wire fraud charge.

Orenthal James Jones was sentenced to 24 months in prison and ordered to pay $20,832 in restitution on May 13, 2024, after pleading guilty to PPP-related wire fraud.

Allure Shapree Roby was sentenced to 2 weeks in prison on June 20, 2024, and ordered to pay $20,832 in restitution after pleading guilty to PPP-related wire fraud.

Ida Made Roby was sentenced to 3 years probation on July 2, 2024, and ordered to pay $20,833 in restitution after pleading guilty to PPP-related wire fraud.

Stacy Antwanette Cole was sentenced to 5 years probation and ordered to pay $20,332 in restitution on July 19, 2024, after pleading guilty to a PPP-related wire fraud charge.

Reid Jonathan Geerts was sentenced to 15 months in prison and ordered to pay $19,166 in restitution on September 3, 2024, after pleading guilty to PPP-related wire fraud.

The COVID-19 Anti-Fraud Task Force is working to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. Anyone with information about alleged attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by calling the Department of Justice’s National Center on Disaster Fraud (NCDF) at 866-720-5721 or through the NCDF Web Complaint Form at: https://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.