Jena Lea Wells, a 30-year-old woman from Silvis, Illinois, was sentenced on March 9 to more than three years in federal prison for her involvement in the theft of fifteen guns from a house in Waterloo.
Wells pleaded guilty on September 19, 2025, to possession of stolen firearms. The case highlights ongoing efforts by law enforcement to address gun theft and related crimes.
According to information presented at the plea and sentencing hearings, Wells was living in Waterloo with her boyfriend, Justin Barnes, in June 2024 when they stole fifteen guns from an unoccupied house. Wells acted as a lookout while Barnes took the firearms. The stolen guns were then brought to Wells’s residence.
Barnes attempted to sell the firearms but was stopped by police during a traffic stop on June 10, 2024. Officers found several of the stolen guns in Barnes’s backpack. During this stop, Wells tried to hide the bag containing the weapons by pulling it toward her seat in the car. Police later searched Wells’s home twice; during the first search she denied having any stolen firearms at her residence. When officers returned and found additional stolen firearms during a second search, she again falsely denied knowledge of their presence.
United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams sentenced Wells in Cedar Rapids to 41 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. There is no parole available under federal law. Barnes has also pleaded guilty and is scheduled for sentencing on May 1, 2026.
The case is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative that uses Department of Justice resources to combat illegal immigration and violent crime linked to cartels and transnational criminal organizations. Wells will remain in United States Marshal’s custody until she is transported to federal prison.
