United States Attorney Dennis R. Holmes announced that a Black Hawk, South Dakota, man convicted of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance was sentenced on February 11, 2022, by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Viken.
Eric Yockey, age 36, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Yockey was indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance by a federal grand jury on July 23, 2020. He pleaded guilty on September 22, 2021. During his involvement in the conspiracy, the defendant traveled to California with a co-conspirator and received heroin in payment for assisting in the trip. He also obtained more heroin on other occasions, which was then distributed to people in South Dakota.
This case was investigated by the Unified Narcotics Enforcement Team (UNET), Drug Enforcement Agency, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. UNET is comprised of law enforcment from the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office, Rapid City Police Department, South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, South Dakota National Guard, and the South Dakota Highway Patrol. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kathryn N. Rich prosecuted the case.
Yockey was immediately returned to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.