Bear Heels Rani, Methamphetamine Distribution, South Dakota 2014

In a shocking case of methamphetamine distribution, a Rapid City woman and a Wanblee man were sentenced for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute the highly addictive substance.

Rani Bear Heels, age 24, was sentenced to 41 months in custody, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. The sentencing was handed down by Chief Judge Jeffrey L. Viken on July 18, 2014.

The indictment against Bear Heels came after a federal grand jury charged her with Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance on December 17, 2013. She later pled guilty on April 11, 2014, to her involvement in the conspiracy.

Bear Heels and her co-conspirator, Dana Provincial, received and distributed methamphetamine to individuals around the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota from August 2009 through 2013. The investigation was conducted by the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Indian Affairs Office of Justice Services, and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Ted L. McBride prosecuted the case against Bear Heels and Provincial.

In a separate sentencing, Dana Provincial, age 36, was handed down a sentence of 16 months in custody, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund on July 21, 2014. Provincial was indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance by a federal grand jury on November 19, 2013, and he pled guilty on March 20, 2014.

The investigation into the conspiracy was a collaborative effort between law enforcement agencies, and the sentences handed down to Bear Heels and Provincial serve as a reminder of the consequences of participating in methamphetamine distribution.

Bear Heels and Provincial were immediately turned over to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service following their sentencing.

The case against Bear Heels and Provincial serves as a warning to those involved in the distribution of methamphetamine and the consequences they will face if caught.

In related news, the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety has increased patrols around the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation to combat the growing methamphetamine problem.

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