SIOUX FALLS – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that three Pine Ridge, South Dakota, men have been indicted by a federal grand jury for Second Degree Murder – Aiding and Abetting.
Lance Wahokiza Red Cloud, age 27, Vine Phillipe Hayes, age 47, and Michael Red Cloud, age 30, were indicted in September of 2022. All three men appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daneta Wollmann and pleaded not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is life in prison and/or a $250,000 fine, three years of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The charges relate to Lance Red Cloud, Vine Hayes, and Michael Red Cloud beating a man to death in November of 2021, at Pine Ridge, South Dakota.
The charge is merely an accusation, and all three men are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the FBI and the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah B. Collins is prosecuting the case.
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Lance Red Cloud, Vine Hayes, and Michael Red Cloud were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.