Sioux Falls Man Sentenced to 19 Years in Federal Prison for Conspiring to Distribute Fentanyl

SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced today that Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange, U.S. District Court, has sentenced a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, man convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance and Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance.  The sentencing took place on April 13, 2026.

Elizeo Kalimba, 33, was sentenced to 19 years and seven months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $200 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Kalimba was indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance and Possession with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance by a federal grand jury in February 2024.  He was convicted following a jury trial in federal court in October 2025.

Kalimba worked with another individual to obtain thousands of fentanyl pills from Arizona that he then distributed in Sioux Falls.  Members of the Sioux Falls Police Department used a confidential informant to conduct two controlled purchases of fentanyl pills from Kalimba and then executed a search warrant at his home that led to the discovery of approximately 3900 pills in his home. Investigators believe Kalimba was responsible for trafficking over 13,000 fentanyl pills in and around the city.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Drug Enforcement Administration, South Dakota DCI, and the Sioux Falls Area Drug Task Force.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Hodges prosecuted the case.

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