An Iowa City man was sentenced to 188 months in prison for conspiracy to distribute cocaine base — also known as crack.

According to an Iowa Attorney General’s Office release, local law enforcement investigated drug-trafficking activities in the summer of 2010, revealing Shelby Lee Young Jr., 26, as a prominent crack distributor in the southeast part of town.

Using a confidential informant, law enforcement made several undercover purchases of crack over many months from Young, the release said.

Young reportedly distributed more than 60 grams of crack cocaine. He was arrested, and on March 7, 2011, he entered a guilty plea to conspiring to distribute at least 28 grams of crack cocaine between July and November 2010.

— by Brian Albert