A Pella man facing numerous drug and gun felony charges has been found guilty by a jury.
George Hettinga, 66, was found guilty on all eight counts, including manufacturing marijuana, a class B felony, failure to affix a drug tax stamp, five counts of possession of firearms as a convicted felon, all class D felonies, and maintaining a drug house. Closing arguments were held Wednesday after testimony Monday and Tuesday. Assistant County Attorney Jared Harmon credited the work of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office and Pella Police Department, as well as his colleagues in the County Attorney’s office, in getting justice.
“I’d first like to thank the members of Marion County who came in and served on the jury and took time out of their lives to come in and listen to this case attentively and reach a just verdict,” he says. “I would also really like to thank the members of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, as well as the Pella Police Department, for their excellent work in the investigation in this case. They truly showed a class act in the investigation and provided evidence that provided the conviction for Mr. Hettinga.”
The charges came from an incident on April 20th, 2017, which included the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Pella Police Department and Pella Ambulance personnel responding to Hettinga’s home for a report of a possible overdose. Law enforcement officers and rescue personnel unsuccessfully attempted to resuscitate 24 year old Nicole R. Johnston, who was dead when crews arrived. The Mid Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force found drugs and numerous weapons on the property at the time. A sentencing hearing will be at a later date.
In February, Hettinga was also charged in Mahaska County with unlawful possession of prescription drug, two counts of possession of a controlled substance – 2nd offense, and failure to affix a drug tax stamp. He has pled not guilty and has a pretrial conference for those charges in September.