Rogelio Guel Jr., Methamphetamine Distribution, NE 2016

Rogelio (Roy) Guel, Jr., 41, of Scottsbluff, Nebraska, is headed to federal prison after being nailed for his role in a sprawling methamphetamine distribution ring that pumped poison through South Dakota for over a year. On November 28, 2016, U.S. District Judge Roberto A. Lange slammed Guel with a 63-month sentence, marking the end of a crackdown on a conspiracy that flooded tribal and rural communities with high-grade crystal meth.

Guel admitted his guilt on September 14, 2016, pleading guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance—specifically methamphetamine, a Schedule II drug known for ripping families apart and fueling violent crime. The plea came after a federal grand jury indicted him on March 15, 2016, on additional charges including Possession with Intent to Distribute and unlawful firearm possession, though the meth conspiracy stuck.

From January 2015 to March 2016, Guel wasn’t just moving drugs—he was a key link in a network that trafficked distributable quantities of meth across the District of South Dakota. He took bulk shipments from suppliers who knew he’d turn around and flood the streets. He also handed off meth to underlings who did the same, creating a pyramid of addiction. Prosecutors proved it was reasonably foreseeable that at least 350 grams of the drug would be pushed during the scheme—well into federal sentencing enhancement territory.

The investigation that brought Guel down was a joint bloodhound operation led by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services and the Northern Plains Safe Trails Drug Enforcement Task Force. Their work peeled back layers of secrecy, tracking supply routes from out-of-state sources into vulnerable reservations and border towns where desperation and addiction feed off each other.

Assistant U.S. Attorney SaraBeth Donovan prosecuted the case with a no-nonsense approach, securing not only prison time but also a $1,000 fine, a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund, and 3 years of supervised release post-incarceration. The sentence sends a message: feeding the meth trade in Indian Country or anywhere in South Dakota comes with federal consequences.

Immediately after sentencing, Guel was handed over to the U.S. Marshals Service, vanishing into the federal prison system. His name now joins the ledger of those who gambled with addiction and lost. The Rosebud Sioux and surrounding communities get a brief reprieve—one dealer down, but the war on meth rages on.