Alison J. Ramsdell U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota
A Mission, South Dakota man has been sentenced to nearly six years in federal prison for assaulting another man with a machete. U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte handed down the sentence to Robert Romero, 48, on October 20, 2025.
Romero received a sentence of five years and eight months in federal prison. After his release, he will be subject to three years of supervised release and must pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Romero was indicted by a federal grand jury in October 2024 and pleaded guilty on July 21, 2025.
The incident occurred in May 2024 within the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation. On May 12, Romero saw the victim walking along the road in Mission. He stopped his vehicle and argued with the victim before exiting his car and striking the victim’s arm with a machete. The attack caused a serious injury that required hospitalization.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecuted this case under the Major Crimes Act, which requires certain violent crimes committed in Indian Country to be prosecuted federally rather than at the state level.
"This matter was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office because the Major Crimes Act, a federal statute, mandates that certain violent crimes alleged to have occurred in Indian Country be prosecuted in Federal court as opposed to State court," according to information from prosecutors.
The investigation was conducted by Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Albertson led the prosecution.
After sentencing, Romero was immediately remanded into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service.
