April 2026:
A federal jury has convicted Quantiae Harris, age 49, of Las Vegas, Nevada, of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance – Methamphetamine, Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance – Fentanyl, and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering following a 5-day jury trial in federal district court in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Harris was indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2024. The verdict was returned on March 27, 2026.
The two charges for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance each carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years and up to life imprisonment, a $20 million dollar fine, and at least 10 years to life of supervised release. The charge for Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison, a $500,000 fine or twice the value of the monetary instruments involved (whichever is greater), and three years of supervised release.
In 2023 and 2024, Harris was the leader of a California and Nevada-based drug trafficking organization responsible for bringing large quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl to the Sioux Falls area. Harris and his underlings sent packages of drugs through the U.S. mail and used rental vehicles with hidden compartments to drive drugs from California to South Dakota. They began operating out of hotel rooms before switching to short-term rental properties, typically Airbnbs, in Sioux Falls, which they used as bases of operation to distribute the drugs to local sub-distributors.
The organization was careful not to conduct their sales at the places they were staying. When a customer needed to purchase more drugs, they would call or text one of the members and be directed to meet up at public location close to wherever the organization was staying at the time. The meetups were brief, often only lasting a matter of seconds. Customers were directed to pay either in cash or using an online funds transfer service, which was typically Cash App.
Testimony at trial established the drug trafficking organization sold over 100 pounds of methamphetamine and tens of thousands of fentanyl pills during the time it was operational. The criminal syndicate is also attributed to having been the first to introduce powder fentanyl—an even more potent and lethal form of the drug than the pill form—to the Sioux Falls market. Thanks in large part to Harris and his subordinates, powder fentanyl has since become the predominant illegal opioid in the local market.
Harris or the drug dealers who worked for him would vacuum-seal bags of collected cash to be hidden in rental cars on return trips to Nevada and California, as well as deposit some of the illegal
proceeds in local banks. Harris was specifically linked to over $1.2 million in money laundering transactions during the time his drug trafficking organization was operational in Sioux Falls.
“This was a major bust of significant figure in the lurid underworld of illegal drugs. I’m incredibly proud of the team of federal, state, and local law enforcement officers and our federal prosecutors who made this case and secured the conviction of this Las Vegas drug dealer, responsible for so much misery and suffering in the Sioux Falls area,” said U.S. Attorney Parsons.
“The Trump Administration has designated fentanyl a weapon of mass destruction due to its extreme lethality in extremely small amounts,” U.S. Attorney Parsons continued. “In its pure powder form, it truly is a chemical weapon. If a member of your family used fentanyl in Sioux Falls over the past few years, this defendant is one of the primary drug dealers likely to have brought it here.
The jury listened carefully to the evidence and returned a guilty verdict on every count. He is now out of business for good.” Below are photographs of some of the fentanyl and methamphetamine seized during the investigation and admitted at trial.
Sept. 17, 2025:
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in South Dakota indicted 88 defendants between April and August 2025 for federal offenses related to the trafficking of cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine.
United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell says these federal charges resulted from sophisticated, long-term investigations carried out by federal, state, tribal, and local law enforcement agencies, many of which collaborate through one of the various long-standing drug task forces operating throughout South Dakota.
“Drug traffickers who flood our South Dakota communities with illegal narcotics will be met with the full force of federal prosecution,” said U.S. Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office in South Dakota is proud to work alongside federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to protect the public by disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking organizations. We will continue to use every legal tool available to ensure drug traffickers face significant sentences in federal prison for endangering our communities and fueling addiction.”
Leading the effort to identify and dismantle drug trafficking organizations operating in South Dakota are multi-agency drug task forces located throughout the state, including the following:
- Sioux Falls Area Drug Task Force (SFADTF), comprised of the Sioux Falls Police Department, the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
- Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team (UNET), comprised of the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, the Rapid City Police Department, DCI, the South Dakota Highway Patrol (SDHP), and the South Dakota National Guard (SDNG)
- Badlands Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force, comprised of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Indian Affairs-Division of Drug Enforcement (BIA-DDE), DCI, and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety (OSTDPS)
- Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force, comprised of the FBI, BIA-DDE, DCI, SDHP, SDNG, Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, Hughes County Sheriff’s Office, Tripp County Sheriff’s Office, Ziebach County Sheriff’s Office, and the Mobridge Police Department
Among the 88 defendants indicted over the course of the last several months were 16 defendants arrested during Operation Snowy Ridge, a two-day, multi-agency drug trafficking takedown in Western South Dakota.
Examples of significant illegal drug cases prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office this calendar year, and the federal prison sentences that resulted, include the following:
- United States v. Rikki Barrowman, et al.: Defendant pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance (150 pounds of methamphetamine) throughout Pierre, Rapid City, and several South Dakota reservations and was sentenced to nearly 23 years in federal prison. The case was investigated by the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan Dilges prosecuted the case.
- United States v. Guillermo Calderon, et al.: Defendant pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance (methamphetamine) within the Pine Ridge Reservation and Rapid City area and was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison. The case was investigated by the FBI, DEA, BIA-OJS, and OSTDPS. Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Lindrooth prosecuted the case.
- United States v. Curtis Cummings, et al.: Following a jury trial, Defendant was convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance (fentanyl) Resulting in Death. He was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison; his co-conspirators each received 20-23 years in federal prison. The case was investigated by UNET. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meghan Dilges and Edward Tarbay prosecuted the case.
- United States v. Nathan Johnson, et al.: This 24-defendant methamphetamine conspiracy spanned the state and was one of the largest drug conspiracies in South Dakota history. The lead co-conspirators received sentences ranging from 27-36 years in federal prison. The case was investigated by the DEA, FBI, United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations (IRS-CI), DCI, the SFADTF, and the SDHP, with collaboration from more than a dozen other federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies across the country. Assistant U.S. Attorney Paige Petersen prosecuted the case.
- United States v. Cory Linderman, et al.: Defendant was part of a group of people who worked together to traffic approximately 100 pounds of methamphetamine throughout the Rapid City area. He was sentenced to 23 years in federal prison. Other co-conspirators received sentences ranging from 14-22 ½ years in federal prison. The case was investigated by UNET. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Hodges prosecuted the case.
- United States v. Quantiae Harris, et al.: This 26-defendant methamphetamine and fentanyl conspiracy operated throughout the Sioux Falls area. To date, numerous defendants have pleaded guilty and Defendants Hailey Schneiderman and Heather Downey have been sentenced to 16 years and 10 years in federal prison, respectively. The case was investigated by the DEA, the SFADTF, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Joyce is prosecuting the case.
- United States v. Misty Stahlhoefer, et al.: This seven-defendant conspiracy involved the distribution of approximately 30-35 pounds of methamphetamine throughout the Pierre area. Misty Stahlhoefer was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison. Other co-conspirators received sentences ranging from 2-18 years in federal prison. The case was investigated by the FBI’s Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force, the Pierre Police Department, the Chamberlain Police Department, and the Lyman County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan Dilges prosecuted the case.
- United States v. Calvin Taylor, et al.: Three defendants were charged with Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance (methamphetamine) in the Aberdeen area. Two defendants pleaded guilty and one was convicted at trial. Defendants Hillard and Fowler have received 10 years and 25 years in federal prison, respectively. Taylor awaits sentencing. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Joyce is prosecuting the case.
The prosecution of illegal narcotics by the U.S. Attorney’s Office is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the United States Department of Justice to achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
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