Mason City Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegal Firearm Possession

A Mason City man has been sentenced to federal prison for illegally possessing a firearm.

Brandon Mitchell, 29, was sentenced December 18, 2025, in federal court in Sioux City after pleading guilty April 30, 2025, to being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm. Court records show Mitchell had two prior misdemeanor domestic abuse assault convictions in Cerro Gordo County, which barred him from legally possessing a firearm.

Evidence presented at Mitchell’s plea and sentencing hearings showed he was also an unlawful user of marijuana. Authorities say on February 24, 2024, Mitchell possessed a 9mm pistol while he was under state felony indictment for attempted murder, intimidation with a dangerous weapon, and possession of a firearm by a domestic abuser.

Investigators say Mitchell admitted that during the execution of a search warrant at his residence, he threw the 9mm pistol out of a bedroom window in an attempt to avoid being found in possession of the firearm.

Mitchell was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand to 57 months in federal prison. He will also serve two years of supervised release following his prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

Mitchell remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshal until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Mason City Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kraig R. Hamit.