Latest news with #DivisionofCriminalInvestigation
Yahoo
11-06-2025
- Yahoo
Another man found dead in his cell at South Dakota State Penitentiary
People hold signs at a protest on May 23, 2025, at the South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) The state is investigating another death in Department of Corrections custody. Nicholas Skorka, 42, died at the South Dakota State Penitentiary on Tuesday, according to a press release. The release did not list a cause of death for Skorka. He is the 10th person to die in the department's custody this year and the fourth that will be subject to scrutiny by the state Division of Criminal Investigation, the investigative arm of the Attorney General's Office. 10 injured in prison violence days after protests over security and inmate treatment The death certificate for one of the investigated cases, that of 20-year-old Anthony Richards, lists the cause of his February death as an overdose of 'synthetic cannabinoid 5F-ADB,' a drug sometimes referred to as K2. Two other inmates, 39-year-old Jason Garreau and 24-year-old Joshua Arrow, died days apart late last month. Arrow's official death certificate has yet to be filed; Garreau's was filed last week and lists methamphetamine toxicity' as his cause of death. Wednesday's release did not say if Skorka's death is being investigated as drug-related. An autopsy for Skorka, whose body was found in his cell, will take place Thursday. 'DCI will do a thorough investigation, and we will determine what additional action is needed pending the results of that investigation,' Attorney General Marty Jackley said in the release. On May 29, Department of Corrections spokesman Michael Winder sent a notice saying the department had busted a drug ring at the penitentiary. Its staff seized shipments of drugs intended for delivery to Sioux Falls inmates via the mail and parcels delivered by visitors to inmates. 'If the results of the investigation warrant prosecution,' that day's news release said, 'criminal charges will be sought.' Jackley's spokesman Tony Mangan told South Dakota Searchlight on Wednesday that no charges have been filed for actions tied to the drug ring or in-custody deaths. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Structure fire; Prison assaults; High weekend temps
SIOUX FALLS S.D. (KELO) — Here are this morning's top stories with KELOLAND On the Go. A structure fire could be seen on the northeast side of Sioux Falls on the 2200 block of West 8th Street. We were able to capture the smoke through our downtown Sioux Falls live cam. Structure fire burns apartment in north Sioux Falls The Division of Criminal Investigation is looking into reports of several assaults on the South Dakota State Penitentiary's campus this week. This latest incident concerns Project Prison Reset task force members for a number of reasons. Task force reacts to inmate assault reports Temperatures will be rising into the weekend, well into the 80s in most locations. We do expect a few scattered hits of rain in central SD tomorrow morning. Smoke arrives this weekend; Thunderstorms likely next week Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Task force reacts to inmate assault reports
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The Division of Criminal Investigation is looking into reports of several assaults on the South Dakota State Penitentiary's campus this week. This latest incident concerns Project Prison Reset task force members for a number of reasons. 'Where we're at today, that opportunity for those inmates to injure a correctional officer exists, and we need to eliminate that,' South Dakota Republican Representative Greg Jamison said. Jamison said Tuesday's reports reflect the challenges prison staff face when it comes to separating inmates inside the current men's prison facilities. In a news release, Attorney General Marty Jackley says, ' Evidence suggests that the assaults are gang related.' 'One of the challenges with the prison is to separate those gang members or opposing gang members, if you will, so they never wind up in the same area at the same time because these fights are probably inevitable,' Jamison said. South Dakota Republican Senator Jim Mehlhaff worries the current facilities are not safe for staff or prisoners. 'Just the design of it. Blind corners and dead ends,' Mehlhaff said. 'It's difficult to put prisoners where they need to be because of the overcrowding.' The issue is what sometimes leads to inmate fights. 'Imagine you're in a space, as you can appreciate, in a crowded area, and all of a sudden you start pushing and somebody pushes back. It turns into a fight pretty easy,' Jamison said. 'That overcrowding piece has just got to get fixed, and the new prison is going to eliminate that.' It's one of the task force's top priorities when it comes to building a new men's prison. Having more rehabilitation resources is important, too. 'We don't want to take people off the streets and just hold them indefinitely and put them back out on the streets to recidivate again,' Mehlhaff said. 'A new prison is going to be a safer place for the employees. That's one of the things I'm hopeful for and I'm looking for,' Jamison said. 'The current setup right now is not a safe place.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Yahoo
Carroll trial Day 2: DCI explains investigation into $1.7 million
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — Prosecutors laid out on Wednesday morning how the state Division of Criminal Investigation and the state Department of Legislative Audit concluded that Lonna Carroll allegedly stole more than $1.7 million from the South Dakota Department of Social Services while she was employed there. 5 witnesses testify as DSS embezzlement trial begins DCI supervisory special agent Matt Glenn said a search of a Pierre storage unit rented by Carroll was packed with containers of clothes as well as boxes of receipts and personal bank statements that indicated she was 'spending way more than she was making from her state job' as a financial program assistant in the Division of Child Protection that paid $21.09 per hour. Glenn told the jury that the receipts showed purchases costing hundreds of dollars were paid in round amounts of cash. Another witness, intelligence analyst April Pontrelli, presented a report looking at Carroll's deposits and spending from 2010 through March 2023 when Carroll retired. Pontrelli said Carroll's deposits substantially increased beyond her annual salary during that period, as did her spending. A special report prepared by the Department of Legislative Audit covering March 2017 through December 2022 found that Carroll requested more than $930,000 of special purchases for accounts of children who had been in the department's care and then authorized those requests to be paid. Kelly Mikkelsen testified about the Legislative Audit report. Carroll's defense attorney Timothy Whalen said that was a lot of money rolling through a handful of those children's accounts. He asked Mikkelsen, 'Something that should have raised an eyebrow?' Mikkelsen answered, 'Possibly, yes.' Whalen then asked whether Child Protection Services director Pam Bennett should have been responsible for catching Carroll's actions. 'Yes,' Mikkelsen said. Next Whalen asked whether others in the office should have been responsible. 'Everybody's responsible,' Mikkelsen said. Whalen asked Mikkelsen if he had any personal knowledge that Carroll circumvented policies and procedures. 'Through our special review, I think she did,' Mikkelsen said. He told Whalen that Carroll shouldn't have had authority to make requests and then approve them. He added that the person approving requests shouldn't be allowed to deposit the check, as Carroll did. Prosecutor Nolan Welker then followed up on Mikkelsen's statement that everyone was responsible for following the rules. 'Did that include Lonna Carroll?' Welker asked. 'Yes,' Mikkelsen said. Carroll's trial resumed Wednesday afternoon and is scheduled to continue through Friday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-03-2025
- Yahoo
AG warns Iowans about scammers impersonating the Iowa Attorney General's Office
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird issued a warning to Iowans on Monday about scammers impersonating as the Iowa Attorney General's Office looking to take money from unsuspecting victims. The office received reports of scammers impersonating Bird and her office on social media to victims of cryptocurrency scams, a news release from spokesperson Alyssa Brouillet said. 'Scammers are attempting to convince these Iowans to send personal or financial information for an alleged 'refund' of the money lost through a cryptocurrency ATM,' the news release said. The scammers are reaching victims through social media platforms such as Facebook and Telegram, the news release said. Some of the scam accounts use photos of Bird and a seal claiming to be part of the Division of Criminal Investigation. 'These con artists are so evil that they are even pretending to be me,' Bird said in a statement. 'If someone claiming to be from my office offers you a refund for crypto ATM scams, it's fake. Call my office for help at 1-888-777-4590, and do not send money, personal information, or financial information.' Those who believe they have encountered a scam account can also report them online. José Mendiola is a breaking news reporter for the Register. Reach him at jmendiola@ or follow him on X @mendiola_news. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa attorney general issues warning on scammers impersonating AG
