Former Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent in the United States, Guyana-born, Dr. Ian Roberts, was sentenced to two years in prison today after pleading guilty to federal immigration and weapons charges.
Roberts was arrested in September 2024 following the US crack down on illegal immigration and on persons who may have overstayed their time in the United States.
According to Prosecutors, Roberts first arrived in the US on a students’ visa.
Roberts has been living in the United States since 1999 and represented Guyana at the 2000 Olympics before furthering his education in the US and beginning a career as an educator. He landed the job as Public Schools Superintendent in Des Moines, Iowa in 2023 and has been praised for his leadership of the public school system there.
Roberts was the first Black superintendent at DMPS. He led the state’s largest school district from July 2023 until he resigned in October following his arrest by ICE officers.
In a plea deal reached with prosecutors, Roberts admitted to lying about being a citizen when he was hired by the school district. He did not have authorization to work in the U.S. at that time.
A judge issued an order to remove him from the country in 2024.
He also pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm without legal status in the U.S. Investigators found four guns in Roberts’ car and home after he was arrested, including a loaded handgun in his district-issued car.
Roberts will be credited for the time he’s already been incarcerated since his arrest, which his attorney said could be around nine months by the time he’s transported.
Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger recommended for Roberts to be sent to a facility that would expedite his deportation after his sentence is completed.
U.S. Attorney David Waterman had recommended a prison sentence of 37 months, while Roberts’ defense attorneys had asked for probation.
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