A Newton man has been charged with two class D felony drug charges after Newton Police say he refused to leave a downtown bar at closing time. The criminal complaint against 37-year-old Nathaniel Jo Sjaardema says officers arrested him for trespassing and disorderly conduct just before 2 a.m. this past Saturday, because he refused to leave PB’s Pub on First Avenue East. Three additional charges, one aggravated misdemeanor offense of 1st degree harassment and two class D felony counts of 3rd or subsequent possession of a controlled substance, were added as Sjaardema was being booked into the Jasper County Jail. Police claim he threatened officers at the jail, and was found to be in possession of 1.9 grams of marijuana and .9 grams of methamphetamine. 

District Associate Judge Steven Holwerda has set a March 16th court appearance for Sjaardema. Court records show he has three prior convictions for possession of a controlled substance from January 2008, September 2017, and July 2022.