SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – A 23-year-old man has admitted to being part of a drug conspiracy and distributing 400 grams or more of a fentanyl-laced mixture in South Dakota, according to KELOLAND Media Group. The news agency reports that Meron Kalili Woldu entered a guilty plea at the federal courthouse in Sioux Falls.
According to a Factual Basis Statement, Woldu traveled to Arizona and picked up around 9,000 fentanyl pills that he intended to take to Sioux Falls for distribution. However, Woldu’s suitcase was searched at an Omaha bus station, and he was arrested.
Just two milligrams of fentanyl can be deadly, and a single kilogram (2.204 pounds) has the potential to kill 500,000 people, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Woldu is set to be sentenced on June 23.
As Emily’s Hope previously reported, fentanyl-related arrests and seizures have surged in South Dakota. In 2024, law enforcement recorded 330 fentanyl-related arrests, up from 284 the previous year.
