Arvin, California, Man Sentenced for Facilitating a Drug Crime

RAPID CITY - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that United States District Judge Karen E. Schreier has sentenced a Arvin, California, man convicted of Use of a Communication Facility in the Commission of a Drug Trafficking Crime. The sentencing took place on August 11, 2023.

Eduardo Acosta, 24, was sentenced to 37 months custody in federal prison, followed by one year of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Acosta was indicted for Use of a Communication Facility in the Commission of a Drug Trafficking Crime by a federal grand jury in June 2022. He pleaded guilty on May 26, 2023.

Acosta resides in California. His acquaintance, Victor Alfonso Leon-Pacheco, was in custody in Oklahoma. Acosta accepted payments for drug proceeds that were wired through money exchange services. This occurred multiple times between September 2021 and January 2022. Acosta also sent packages containing controlled substances to South Dakota at the direction of Leon-Pacheco. Acosta and Leon Pacheco utilized cell phones to communicate, which are also considered to be communication facilities.

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team, which is  local drug task force comprised of law enforcement from 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 Kathryn N. Rich prosecuted the case.

Acosta will report to the Bureau of Prisons in September.