By: Devin Fry
HORACE, N.D. (Valley News Live) – The man accused of shooting a coworker in the parking lot of a Horace school Monday had prior federal convictions for drug distribution and counterfeiting crimes in Pennsylvania.
Court records obtained by Valley News Live show Garmonyou Dougar Wiles, 40, pleaded guilty in November 2017 to 11 federal counts in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, including conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, distribution of crack cocaine, possession of counterfeit currency, and dealing in counterfeit currency.
Wiles was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. As part of his supervised release conditions, Wiles was explicitly prohibited from owning, possessing, or having access to a firearm.
The 2017 Case
According to a criminal complaint filed by U.S. Secret Service Special Agent Harry N. Speer, Wiles was the subject of a federal investigation involving both drug sales and a counterfeit currency operation in the Philadelphia area.
On September 28, 2016, DEA officers conducted a controlled buy in which Wiles sold approximately one ounce of crack cocaine at a gas station in Philadelphia. The transaction was recorded on video and audio.
On March 7, 2017, Wiles and a co-defendant, Michael Barnes, sold $10,000 in counterfeit Federal Reserve notes to an undercover law enforcement officer in a Philadelphia parking lot in exchange for $2,000 in genuine currency. Investigators say the counterfeit bills were made by bleaching genuine $1 bills and re-printing them to appear as $100 bills. Secret Service databases showed approximately $367,800 worth of counterfeit notes bearing the same serial number had been removed from circulation in the Philadelphia area as of February 2017.
Following the controlled buy, Wiles entered a Philadelphia TD Bank and exchanged a $100 bill for 100 $1 bills, which investigators say he intended to use to produce more counterfeit currency.
Wiles pleaded guilty to 11 counts and was sentenced November 29, 2017, by U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Savage in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Monday’s Shooting
On Monday, April 13, Wiles was arrested after allegedly shooting a coworker in the hand in the parking lot of Heritage Middle School in Horace, where both men were working as members of a construction crew on a school extension project. No students or staff were injured.
West Fargo Police say a construction site supervisor had sent Wiles home earlier that morning to de-escalate a dispute. Wiles allegedly returned during the crew’s scheduled break and shot the victim.
Wiles faces five charges including:
- Attempted murder — Intentional adult victim, dangerous weapon/firearm (Felony A)
- Reckless endangerment — Firearm (Felony B)
- Terrorizing — With a dangerous weapon (Felony C)
- Aggravated assault — Dangerous weapon or other weapon, adult victim (Felony C)
- Discharge of a firearm within city limits (Misdemeanor B)
Valley News Live is working to confirm whether Wiles was still under federal supervised release at the time of Monday’s shooting. His supervised release conditions barred him from possessing a firearm.
