RAPID CITY – A Pine Ridge man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for enticement of a minor, announced United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell.
U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier sentenced Rowland Coomes, age 37, on August 12, 2024, after he pleaded guilty on May 30, 2024, to the charge of enticement of a minor.
In February 2022, a 14-year-old female reported that she had been provided methamphetamine and sexually assaulted by Coomes while on the Pine Ridge Reservation.
During the report, the 14-year-old female disclosed that Coomes had also solicited her for nude photographs, constituting child pornography, in exchange for transportation.
The FBI applied for and received a search warrant to search Coomes’ Facebook account, which revealed that Coomes had received images constituting child pornography.
An analysis of Coomes’ Facebook account established that he was in an illegal sexual relationship with another victim living on the Reservation.
After Coomes’ arrest, he contacted a family member and urged the family member to delete his Facebook account in order to get rid of evidence establishing his guilt.
However, the FBI had already searched and seized his account at the time Coomes made the request to the family member.
This matter was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office because the Major Crimes Act, a federal statute, mandates that certain violent crimes alleged to have occurred in Indian country be prosecuted in federal court as opposed to state court.
This case was investigated by the FBI, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Megan Poppen prosecuted the case.
Coomes was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
The defendant was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, followed by 10 years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Key Facts
- State: South Dakota
- Category: Sex Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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