Eight individuals are facing federal charges in a heroin trafficking conspiracy that poisoned the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation from December 2017 to June 2018. The indictment, unsealed today, names TYRONE JAMES NELSON, 38, ROBERT DONTELL SYKES, 48, DAVID LEE SNODDY, 36, RAMON FORD, 58, DEVONN ROSE MITCHELL, 23, KRISTIN RAE BOYD, 28, DUWAYNE IVAN SCHWENSEN, 26, and CHASE REED NICKABOINE, 20. They are accused of conspiring to distribute over 100 grams of heroin, flooding tribal lands with a drug that has devastated communities across the country.
The charges hit hard: each defendant is charged with conspiracy to distribute heroin. Additional counts include distribution and possession with intent to distribute. NELSON, SYKES, and SNODDY each face two counts of distribution; FORD, BOYD, and SYKES face an added charge of possession with intent to distribute. MITCHELL, SCHWENSEN, and NICKABOINE are each charged with one count of distribution. City of residence is unknown for NELSON and SYKES; SNODDY is from Minneapolis, FORD from Brooklyn Park, and the rest reside in Onamia, Minn.
‘Here in Minnesota, and around the nation, our Native American communities have been disproportionately affected by heroin and opioid abuse. This is unacceptable,’ said U.S. Attorney Erica MacDonald. ‘My office and our law enforcement partners remain aggressive in our approach to stopping those who infiltrate our communities with this poison.’ The statement underscores the federal government’s intensified focus on drug networks exploiting tribal jurisdictions.
Mille Lacs Band Chief Executive Melanie Benjamin praised the joint operation. ‘The Band is very grateful for the critical assistance provided by Bureau of Indian Affairs and federal law enforcement officers, and the U.S. Attorney,’ she said. ‘I would especially like to thank our Mille Lacs Tribal Police force. They have done outstanding work in leading this effort with our federal partners to address the drug epidemic on our Reservation.’
Chief of Police Sara Rice confirmed the Bureau of Indian Affairs Division of Drug Enforcement (BIA DDE) was instrumental, embedded with tribal officers throughout the investigation. Agencies from Crow Wing and Sherburne counties, Lakes Area Drug Investigation Division, Paul Bunyan Drug Task Force, Red Lake Tribal Police, Minneapolis Police, Minnesota BCA, DEA, Department of Corrections, U.S. Marshals, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office all contributed to the sprawling probe.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Deidre Y. Aanstad is prosecuting the case. The investigation was led by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Mille Lacs Tribal Police Department. If convicted, defendants face steep mandatory minimums and decades behind bars. For now, the indictment marks a blow against a network that turned addiction into profit on sacred land.
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Key Facts
- State: Minnesota
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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