“Texas” Cole Gets 20 Years for Meth & Fentanyl Flood

RAPID CITY, SD – Michael Cole, 34, known on the streets as “Texas,” is headed to federal prison for two decades after being sentenced for flooding the Rapid City area with methamphetamine and fentanyl. U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier handed down the 20-year sentence on August 15, 2025, following a guilty plea earlier this year.

Cole, indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2024, faced two counts of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. He admitted to conspiring with others between January and February 2024 to distribute the deadly drugs. The operation involved cross-state travel, with Cole personally procuring large quantities of both methamphetamine and fentanyl in Colorado before transporting them back to South Dakota for distribution. Adding insult to injury, Cole was already on federal supervised release for a prior drug conspiracy when he re-offended.

The bust wasn’t small potatoes. According to U.S. Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell, the investigation yielded a significant haul: over seven pounds of methamphetamine and more than 2,000 counterfeit M/30 fentanyl pills – enough to kill a substantial portion of the city. Ramsdell praised the Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team for their relentless work in dismantling the operation and bringing Cole to justice. “Thanks to the dogged work…Cole will be spending the next two decades of his life in prison,” she stated.

Beyond the prison sentence, Cole will also serve five years of supervised release after his incarceration and is required to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund for each of the two counts – a paltry sum considering the devastation caused by his actions. The two 10-year sentences for Count 2 will run concurrently with the initial 20-year sentence.

The Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team – a collaborative effort between the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, Rapid City Police Department, South Dakota Highway Patrol, and the National Guard Counter Drug Unit – spearheaded the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward C. Tarbay skillfully prosecuted the case, securing the lengthy sentence.

Following the sentencing, Cole was immediately taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Service. The message is clear: bringing dangerous drugs into South Dakota comes with a steep price, and federal authorities are determined to keep the state’s communities safe – even if it takes a long stretch behind bars.