SIOUX FALLS – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier has sentenced a Sioux Falls man convicted of one count of Distribution of a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death and two counts of Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute. The sentencing took place on March 11, 2024.
Armando Angel Cheshier, 25, was sentenced to 21 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release on the count of Distribution of a Controlled Substance Resulting in Death. He was also sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release on both counts of Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute. All sentences are to run concurrently with one another. He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $12, 457.85 and a $300 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Cheshier was indicted by a federal grand jury in June of 2022. He was found guilty on all counts by a jury on November 22, 2023.
Cheshier distributed fentanyl and Xanax to the victim in this case, which ultimately resulted in her death, due to the fatal amounts of fentanyl in her system. The defendant and victim in this case were friends and had spent the night together, after both ingesting multiple illegal narcotics. The defendant awoke the next day to find the victim lying lifeless in his bed. After Cheshier traveled across town to obtain Narcan to administer to the victim, the authorities were then called, and pronounced the victim deceased at the scene. An interview of the defendant following the incident revealed that he had not only provided the fentanyl that caused the overdose, but that he had also ingested the remaining pills prior to authorities arriving at the scene. Prior to the date of the overdose incident, Cheshier had traveled to Minneapolis to obtain 100 fentanyl pills, which were for both personal use and distribution in the Sioux Falls area.
This case was investigated by the Sioux Falls Area Drug Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Hodges prosecuted the case.
Cheshier was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.