Hedrick man arrested on drug, weapons charges

Local law enforcement agencies arrested a Hedrick man Wednesday, Jan. 27, for alleged possession of controlled substances and illegal weapons.

Gregory Warnke, who lives in rural Wapello County near Hedrick, was charged with possessing marijuana, methamphetamine and illicit offensive weapons such as rifles modified to be fully automatic, short-barreled rifles, a silencer, substantial quantities of ammunition and equipment and gear used to manufacture firearms.

On Wednesday evening, a long-term weapons-trafficking investigation conducted by the Jefferson County Sherriff's Office and the Fairfield Police Department culminated in a joint operation involving those agencies, along with the Wapello County Sheriff's Office, Ottumwa Police Department, the Iowa State Patrol, and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, with support from the Jefferson and Wapello County Attorney's offices.

A warrant was executed on Warnke's home, where the aforementioned items were found.

'Mr. Warnke is a convicted felon, thus the possession of any firearm is illegal in the state of Iowa,” stated a news release from Jefferson County Attorney Chauncey Moulding. 'His possession of illegal offensive weapons such as an automatic, short-barreled, suppressed rifle, along with the equipment to manufacture the same, along with controlled substances, is all the more concerning to public safety.”

Warnke is being held in the Wapello County Jail awaiting initial appearance by the magistrate.