ABERDEEN, S.D. – Two South Dakota men have been sentenced in separate federal methamphetamine trafficking cases, as law enforcement agencies across the country report sharp increases in meth seizures.
Calvin Taylor, 42, of Aberdeen, received a 25-year federal prison sentence for conspiring to distribute a controlled substance. Prosecutors say that beginning in February 2024, Taylor arranged for packages of methamphetamine to be mailed from a California supplier to multiple addresses in and around Aberdeen. He then redistributed the drugs to members of a wider conspiracy. At sentencing, approximately 4.5 pounds of meth was attributed to him.
In a separate case, Alex Lang, 31, of Sioux Falls, was sentenced to more than 13 years for the same charge. Investigators say Lang worked with others to distribute multiple pounds of methamphetamine in Sioux Falls, obtaining the drug from a co-conspirator who sourced meth from Arizona through the mail. Authorities estimate Lang was responsible for selling roughly seven pounds in the community.
Their sentences come as the Drug Enforcement Administration reports a nationwide surge in methamphetamine trafficking. In an interview with ABC News, DEA official Robert Murphy said the agency expects meth seizures to nearly double this year compared to last, noting that “Mexican cartels control 100% of it.”
During the first half of 2025 alone, the DEA seized nearly 65,000 pounds of meth nationwide. Some regional offices, including DEA Omaha, say seizures have tripled compared to the previous year.
According to the DEA’s Special Testing and Research Laboratory, the meth being seized is also stronger than ever, with purity levels approaching 97 percent in 2025, the highest on record.
Unlike opioids, there is no medication that can quickly reverse a meth overdose — a trend Murphy described as alarming.
“What we’ve seen here recently, that frightens me,” he told ABC News.
