Alison J. Ramsdell U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota
A Mexican national has been sentenced to 22 and a half years in federal prison for his involvement in a large-scale methamphetamine distribution conspiracy. The sentencing was announced by United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell, with U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier presiding over the case.
Reynaldo Garcia-Gonzalez, aged 42, will also face five years of supervised release following his prison term and is required to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Garcia-Gonzalez was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2023 and entered a guilty plea on December 9, 2024. His role in the conspiracy involved transporting significant amounts of methamphetamine from California to co-conspirators located in Western South Dakota between April and November 2022. These co-conspirators then distributed the drugs further.
The investigation was conducted by the Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team (UNET) alongside the South Dakota Highway Patrol. UNET consists of members from various law enforcement agencies including the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, Rapid City Police Department, South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, South Dakota Highway Patrol, and the South Dakota National Guard. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Hodges led the prosecution.
Following his sentencing, Garcia-Gonzalez was immediately taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service.
