The illegal alien who served as superintendent of Iowa’s largest public school district appears poised to take a plea deal in federal court.
Ian Roberts remains in the Polk County Jail in Des Moines facing a March 2 trial on charges of possessing a firearm as an illegal immigrant and making false statements on his employment authorization form. Roberts claimed he was a U.S. citizen. He was not, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Then again, the Guyana native and longtime educrat whom the Des Moines School Board gleefully hired in 2023 has made a lot of claims that have turned out to be false. It seems he’s still making some. Now, Des Moines Public Schools is trying to recover from a nationally embarrassing episode while Roberts writes about “redemption” on his LinkedIn page — from jail.
‘In Good Faith’
The Des Moines Register on Thursday reported that federal prosecutors and Roberts’ legal counsel have been working on a plea deal for some time. Just what the deal involves isn’t spelled out in court documents, but filings show the sides have sought to extend timelines. The “parties continue to negotiate in good faith for a resolution but need a few more days to discuss the possibility of resolution,” one recent document states. The U.S. District Court in Des Moines ordered a change of plea hearing for Jan. 22.
Roberts, who also is facing deportation, has claimed innocence in the messy matter. His attorney, Alfredo Parrish, could not be reached for comment Thursday at his Des Moines office. The office’s phone system prevented voicemails.
Roberts, according to ICE, had received a final order of removal in May 2024. He spent the next year-plus in the U.S. unlawfully.
Bob Teig, who served for 32 years as Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Iowa, told WHO13 in Des Moines that prosecutors are supposed to pursue “the most serious, readily provable charges.” The Trump administration clearly has prioritized immigration law enforcement. Still, a plea deal was likely always on the table, said Teig, who is not associated with the case.
“Any prosecution office has more work than it can ever do, and as long as it can serve the public interest by a plea agreement it makes sense probably in the use of judicial and prosecution resources …” the former federal prosecutor told the TV station.
Criminal History
As The Federalist has reported, Des Moines public school officials were stunned to hear the allegations in late September that their star superintendent was not only an illegal immigrant from Guyana, but that he had been in possession of a loaded handgun and $3,000 cash when he was apprehended in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation.
It turns out, as DHS reported, that Roberts had a long criminal history. In 1996 he was charged in New York with possession of narcotics with intent to sell, criminal possession of a forgery instrument, and other offenses. He’s been convicted of reckless driving and has previously been convicted of criminal gun possession charges.
When law enforcement officers apprehended Roberts on Sept. 26, he was carrying a Glock 9mm, a fixed-blade hunting knife and $3,000 in cash, according to the indictment. He quickly resigned as the board prepared to fire him.
Much has changed since the summer of 2023, when the liberal Des Moines Public School board hired the DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) candidate as the district’s next top administrator. Following his arrest, Des Moines residents learned that Roberts had lied about receiving his doctoral degree from Morgan State University years before, among other suspect accomplishments on his resume. Board members knew he was no doctor when they hired him, but they referred to him as Dr. Roberts regardless.
As The Federalist reported, he also claimed to be a U.S. citizen on his Maryland voter registration forms. Records show he registered to vote there — as a Democrat.
“The facts have not changed: Ian Andre Roberts, a criminal illegal alien with multiple weapons charges and a drug trafficking charge, should have never been able to work around children,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin in a statement to The Federalist. “Under Secretary Noem, ICE will continue to arrest the worst of the worst and put the safety of America’s children FIRST.”
‘Radical Empathy’ or Accountability?
Following Roberts’ arrest, Des Moines School Board Chairwoman Jackie Norris, Michelle Obama’s former chief of staff, urged residents to “take a page out of Dr. Roberts’ book and ask the community to engage in radical empathy as we work through the situation together.”
It looks like Roberts hasn’t stopped peddling his equity-driven education philosophy from behind bars as he seemingly attempts to remain viable in education leadership.
In a post this week on his active LinkedIn page claiming to be written by “Dr. Ian A. Roberts,” the ex-con reflects on the past four months of his incarceration and describes how he has been inspiring fellow inmates who stop in to visit with him.
“These polite interruptions have made my current assignment somewhat bearable. Some come with questions. Others need help translating documents. Some ask for prayer. Most just need a listening ear. And more often than not, they ask me to share a story,” he wrote in the post titled, “Removing the Red Asterisks in Our Lives.” He claims he directs his fellow prisoners to affirm in the first person, “I am better than the worst thing I’ve ever done.”
Roberts again recited from the “social justice” gospel of “Radical Empathy.”
“Radical empathy is one’s willingness to allow every person you encounter to redeem themselves — even if it means delaying your progress on a goal,” he wrote.
He does not note why he is in jail. The disgraced former superintendent does, however, continue to claim that he is “Leading Schools and Districts to Optimal Transformation through Proven Empathetic Leadership. Elevating Schools to Excellence.”
We’ll soon find out if the legal system employs “radical empathy” in meting out justice to Roberts.
Matt Kittle is a senior elections correspondent for The Federalist. An award-winning investigative reporter and 30-year veteran of print, broadcast, and online journalism, Kittle previously served as the executive director of Empower Wisconsin.
