Multiple
Law Enforcement Agencies and Prosecutors’ Offices Involved in 14-Month
Operation and Arrests Made Today
BISMARCK—U.S. Attorney for the District
of North Dakota Timothy Q. Purdon announced that a total of 17 defendants have
been arrested and charged with drug trafficking offenses in federal court in
North Dakota and South Dakota and in Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Court as a
result of Operation Prairie Thunder. The federal and tribal drug charges are
the result of “Operation Prairie Thunder,” a 14-month-long investigation by the
Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of
Justice Services on the Standing Rock Reservation. Multiple arrests of
Operation Prairie Thunder defendants were made today on the Standing Rock
Reservation by a cooperating team of federal, local, and tribal law enforcement
officers.
In Bismarck, U.S. Attorney Purdon said,
“The charges filed as a result of Operation Prairie Thunder will make the
Standing Rock community stronger and safer. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is
committed to a strategy in Indian Country that is built on close cooperation
between federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies and
prosecutors. This cooperation has resulted in charges being filed, not just in
federal court, but also in the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s own tribal court
where appropriate. Cooperation like this means better law enforcement, better
prosecutions and safer communities.”
In Sioux Falls, U.S. Attorney for the
District of South Dakota Brendan Johnson said, “These indictments illustrate
the progress that is being made in Standing Rock and throughout Indian Country
in South Dakota and North Dakota. The success of this investigation was the
result of close cooperation between dedicated professionals in numerous law
enforcement agencies.” U.S. Attorney Johnson added, “These are serious offenses,
and we will continue our efforts to work with our law enforcement partners to
investigate and eradicate large-scale drug conspiracies in the Dakotas.”
In Fort Yates, Standing Rock Sioux Chief
Prosecutor Grant Walker said, “Close cooperation between the Standing Rock
Sioux Tribal Prosecutor’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office has allowed the
tribe to participate directly in Operation Prairie Thunder by charging, where
appropriate, additional defendants tied to this investigation in tribal court.
By being a partner in this operation, the Standing Rock Tribe is able, through
the exercise of its own sovereignty, to make its own important contribution to
the safety of its community. ”
Acting Special Agent in Charge Richard
D. Schwein of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Minneapolis Field Office,
which includes North Dakota and South Dakota said, “The arrests resulting from
this joint investigation serve as a shining example of cooperative law
enforcement efforts in the region. The FBI, along with our partners, remains
unwavering in its commitment to the safety and well-being of people on the
Standing Rock Reservation.”
“Jurisdictional issues exist throughout
Indian Country and working together with other federal, state, and local
agencies in a common goal is essential for Indian Country law enforcement,”
said Bureau of Indian Affairs Special Agent in Charge Mario Redlegs. “This
operation affirms to the people of Standing Rock that we are watching
vigilantly and ensuring that they do have a safe place to live.”
U.S. Attorney Purdon praised the
coordinated efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Indian
Affairs Office of Justice Services, United States Marshals Service, Homeland
Security Investigations, Drug Enforcement Administration, Sioux County
Sheriff’s Department, and the United States Parole and Pre-Trial Services in
achieving the near simultaneous arrests today on the Standing Rock Reservation
of many of those charged in the Operation Prairie Thunder cases.
Those charged as a result of Operation
Prairie Thunder include:
Charged in United States District Court,
District of North Dakota:
■Casey Dogskin, 5023 Mule Deer Street,
Fort Yates, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and distribution
of marijuana;
■Donald White Lightning, 5014 3rd
Avenue, Cannonball, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and
distribution of marijuana (two counts);
■Francis Lester, 5664 Douglas Skye
Complex, Fort Yates, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and distribution
of morphine; possession with intent to distribute and distribution of Ritalin;
possession with intent to distribute and distribution of Oxycodone;
■Bryan See Walker, 5659 Douglas Skye
Complex, Fort Yates, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and
distribution of marijuana (two counts);
■Paul Miner, 29 5Hawk Avenue, Fort
Yates, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and distribution of
hydrocodone; possession with intent to distribute and distribution of
marijuana; possession with intent to distribute and distribution of oxycodone;
■Sage Claymore, 479 Whitetail Street,
Fort Yates, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and distribution
of marijuana (two counts);
■James Grant, 546 Warrior Street, Fort
Yates, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and distribution of
morphine;
■Muriel Long Feather, address unknown;
possession with intent to distribute and distribution of oxycodone;
■Winfield Kills Crow, sddress unknown;
possession with intent to distribute and distribution of morphine;
■Allen Siegfried, 5005 4th Ave.,
Cannonball, North Dakota; possession with intent to distribute and distribution
of morphine;
Charged in United States District Court,
District of South Dakota:
■Chaske Little Bear, address unknown;
distribution of a controlled substance (two counts);
■Francine Jensen, address unknown;
distribution of a controlled substance;
Charged in Standing Rock Sioux Tribe
Tribal Court:
■Lance Summers Fort Yates, North Dakota;
criminal sale of drugs
■Chad Yellow Lodge Fort Yates, North
Dakota; criminal sale of drugs
■Odette Elk, Fort Yates, North Dakota;
criminal sale of drugs
■Rodney Claymore, address unknown;
criminal possession of drugs;
■Claude Ramsey, address unknown;
criminal possession of drug paraphernalia
An indictment or a complaint is not
evidence that the defendants committed the crimes charged. The defendants are
presumed innocent until the government meets its burden in court of proving
guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Operation Prairie Thunder cases are
being prosecuted in North Dakota federal court by Assistant U.S. Attorney Gary
Delorme, in South Dakota federal court by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Miller,
and in Standing Rock Sioux Tribal Court by Chief Tribal Prosecutor Grant
Walker.
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