Former Des Moines superintendent Ian Roberts charged with federal gun offense in immigration case
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Superintendent Ian Roberts gives the 2025 State of the Schools address. Photo: Courtesy of DMPS
Former Des Moines Superintendent Ian Roberts was charged with possessing firearms while living in the U.S. without legal status, according to a federal complaint made public Thursday.
The latest: Roberts, who was being held in Woodbury County Jail, was taken by Justice Department officials serving a federal warrant on Thursday, according to a statement by Woodbury County Sheriff Chad Sheehan.
- He is charged with possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, per a criminal complaint released by the DOJ.
- People who are unlawfully in the U.S. are not allowed to possess firearms.
- Roberts' attorneys met publicly with community members Wednesday night but offered few details about his case, declining to address questions about his citizenship status.
The complaint provides more details about Roberts' immigration history and his Sept. 26 detainment.
State of play: The complaint says Roberts entered the U.S. in 1999 on a student visa that expired in 2004.
- He applied for permanent residency in 2001 and multiple times in 2018 but was rejected.
- In 2018 and 2020, Roberts applied for adjustment of status based on his marriage to a U.S. citizen, but it was denied due to his failure to respond to a request for additional information, per the complaint.
- He had an employee authorization card and was legally allowed to work from December 2018 to December 2020, but he has not been authorized since then.
Zoom in: Federal officials say that in May 2024, almost a year after DMPS hired him, Roberts was ordered to leave the U.S. after he failed to attend an immigration hearing.
- In April 2025, a judge denied his request to reopen his case, and the order was final, according to a partially redacted removal order.
The intrigue: In 2024, Roberts hired an immigration attorney in Texas to help him reopen his case, and in 2025, he received a letter from the attorney that said it was handled.
- "It has been my pleasure to represent you throughout this process, and I am pleased to report that your case has reached a successful resolution," per the letter.
- However, the attorney recently told the DOJ that the letter meant his case was closed with her office — not with the courts. He did not pay a legal bill to her office in 2024.
On the day Roberts was detained, ICE officials surveilled his home in the 5300 block of Saint Andrews Circle, near Easter Lake.
- ICE agents say they saw Roberts drive northbound at a "high rate of speed" on Indianola Avenue and followed him into a mobile park.
- They approached his car on foot, and then Roberts sped off.
- They later found the car abandoned in the 1800 block of Swan Lake Circle and found Roberts in the brush around 200 yards away. Iowa State Patrol assisted.
A DMPS public safety employee came to retrieve the car and found a loaded Glock wrapped in a towel underneath the driver's seat, registered to Lenisha Roberts, who is believed to be his spouse.
- A search warrant of his home found more firearms, including a pistol, rifle and shotgun.
- Investigators say it appeared Roberts lived alone in his home.
What's next: The Des Moines school board is holding a special meeting Friday morning to consider suing Roberts for "misrepresenting" his citizenship and recoup damages, per a news release from the district.