Rapid City Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Conspiring to Distribute Fentanyl

RAPID CITY - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange, U.S. District Court, has sentenced a Rapid City, South Dakota, man convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl. The sentencing took place on November 29, 2023.

John Hansen, age 64, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Hansen was indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl by a federal grand jury in March of 2023. He pleaded guilty on September 13, 2023.

Hansen and his daughter, Aubrey, had a source for fentanyl pills in Colorado. On multiple occasions between the summer of 2022 and January of 2023, they traveled to Colorado and brought back thousands of pills, which were then sold to people in Rapid City for use or for further distribution. Overall, Hansen was responsible for bringing between 400 grams and 1.2 kilograms of fentanyl to the Rapid City area. Hansen had several other people assisting him, including his daughter. Each fentanyl pill is approximately 1/10th of a gram of fentanyl and one pill is approximately two dosage units.

Aubrey Hansen was previously sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for her role in the conspiracy.

This case was investigated by the Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team, which is a 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.

Hansen was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.