Kyle Man Sentenced for Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine

Acting United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Kyle, South Dakota, man convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance was sentenced on September 8, 2021, by Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange.

Marcus Pawnee Leggins, age 33, was sentenced to two and a half years in federal prison, followed by three years supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Pawnee Leggins was indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance by a federal grand jury on September 17, 2020.  He pleaded guilty on May 26, 2021.

Beginning at an unknown date, but no later than January 2016 to September 2020, Pawnee Leggins knowingly and intentionally conspired and acted in concert with numerous other individuals to possess and distribute methamphetamine in and around the areas of Kyle and Allen, South Dakota, as well as other locations on the Pine Ridge Reservation. During the course of the conspiracy, Pawnee Leggins possessed and distributed at least 50 grams of substances containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine.  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services – Division of Drug Enforcement, Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety, and the South Dakota Department of Criminal Investigation.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Kelderman prosecuted the case.

Pawnee Leggins was immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.