Pine Ridge Meth Kingpin Gets 10 Years

RAPID CITY, SD – Harrison Caldwell, 31, of Pine Ridge, South Dakota, is headed to federal prison for a decade. U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier handed down the sentence on August 29, 2025, after Caldwell pleaded guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. The case exposes a dangerous network flooding the Rapid City area and the Pine Ridge Reservation with nearly 100% pure methamphetamine sourced directly from Mexican cartels.

The investigation, spearheaded by the FBI, DEA, Badlands Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force, and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety, revealed Caldwell’s role in a large-scale operation that began around November 2023. While Judge Schreier acknowledged Caldwell’s involvement was less significant than other key players, she didn’t shy away from the severity of the crime. This wasn’t a small-time operation; this was a concerted effort to pump poison into vulnerable communities.

Federal prosecutors, led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Lindrooth, presented evidence showing Caldwell and his co-conspirators distributed substantial quantities of the deadly drug. The indictment, returned by a federal grand jury in September 2024, laid bare the scope of the conspiracy. Caldwell’s guilty plea on June 16, 2025, secured the 10-year sentence, but it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the damage inflicted. The streets of Pine Ridge and Rapid City are awash in the consequences of this operation.

But Caldwell’s legal troubles don’t end with this sentence. Judge Schreier ordered the 10-year term to run consecutively to a separate 33-month sentence he was already serving for an assault conviction. He’s facing a lengthy stretch behind bars, and rightly so. The courts are sending a message – dealing in misery carries a heavy price. He was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

In addition to the prison time, Caldwell will face five years of supervised release upon his eventual release. He’s also been ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund – a paltry sum considering the devastation wrought by his actions. This case underscores the relentless flow of narcotics from south of the border and the need for continued collaboration between federal and tribal law enforcement agencies.

Grimy Times will continue to follow this case and report on the efforts to dismantle the remaining pieces of this drug trafficking network. The fight against methamphetamine in South Dakota is far from over, and the communities impacted deserve justice. This sentence is one step, but many more are needed to stem the tide of addiction and violence.

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