Inset: Amber D. Snow (Winneshiek County Jail). Background: The Winneshiek County Sheriff’s Office (Google Maps).
An Iowa woman faces a lengthy prison sentence after attempting to induce a miscarriage by serving a tainted lasagna to a pregnant woman.
Amber Dena Snow, aged 36, admitted guilt on Tuesday to multiple charges. These included attempted nonconsensual termination of a pregnancy, child endangerment, intent to distribute a controlled substance, and four counts of conspiracy to commit a non-forcible felony, as documented in Winneshiek County court records.
Consequently, Snow was swiftly handed a 10-year sentence in state prison.
The incident traces back to late December 2025. As per the Winneshiek County Sheriff’s Office, Snow, along with an accomplice, delivered a lasagna infused with oxycodone to a family.
In January, authorities revealed they were probing claims about a “family-size pan of lasagna” allegedly contaminated with a controlled substance. This led to a comprehensive, multiagency investigation.
The sheriff’s office noted that several warrants were executed during the investigation. It was ultimately revealed that Snow and her partner had deliberately spiked the lasagna, aiming for the pregnant woman in the family to suffer a miscarriage after consuming the dish.
“During the investigation, it was determined that delivery of the tainted lasagna was intended to cause a miscarriage to a pregnancy of a woman in the family that received the lasagna,” the sheriff’s office said.
Initially, law enforcement identified the accomplice as another woman and both women were detained and brought in for questioning — with authorities saying they quickly unraveled the plan.
Weeks later, police arrested Matthew Uthoff, 35, on the same set of charges. He has been identified as Snow’s husband in some reports.
The sheriff’s office pointed to “electronic communications and search history on the defendants’ accounts and phones from before and after the lasagna was prepared and delivered” as key evidence in the case.
The pregnant victim had “no knowledge” of what had been put in the lasagna and did not consent to the drugs being included in the food, law enforcement noted at the time of Snow’s arrest.
Snow shared custody of her child with members of the intended victim’s family, according to the Des Moines Register.
As it turned out, Snow’s child was present while the tainted lasagna was being prepared, had made their opposition to the poisoning plan known, and was also there when the food was delivered.
Testing by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Criminalistics Laboratory determined the lasagna had, in fact, been laced with oxycodone, an opioid typically not recommended during pregnancy.
In April, Uthoff pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.
