Mission Man Indicted for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender

United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that a Mission, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender.

Frank White Thunder, age 35, was indicted in September of 2022. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on September 20, 2022, and pleaded not guilty to the Indictment.

The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to 10 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, five years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.

White Thunder was convicted of Abusive Sexual Contact in April 2008. As a result of this conviction, he is required to register as a sex offender. It is alleged that between April 12, 2022, and August 13, 2022, White Thunder, a person required to register under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act, and a sex offender by reason of conviction under Federal Law, failed to properly register as a sex offender and update his registration.

The charge is merely an accusation and White Thunder is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Marshals Service and the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Albertson is prosecuting the case.   

White Thunder was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.