Sioux Falls Man Sentenced to Two and a Half Years in Federal Prison for Firearm Possession by a Prohibited Person
Dakota Thorstenson, 30, of Sioux Falls, a city in Minnehaha County, South Dakota, was sentenced on November 2, 2026, in federal court to two years and six months in federal prison for possession of a firearm by a prohibited person. U.S. District Judge Karen E. Schreier imposed the sentence, which is followed by three years of supervised release and a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Thorstenson was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.
Thorstenson was indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2026 for possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and pleaded guilty on August 11, 2026.
The case began with a law-enforcement encounter in April of this year. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of South Dakota, Thorstenson was the driver of a vehicle involved in two automobile accidents in rapid succession in southern Sioux Falls. Local law enforcement took him into custody as a result of the accidents, searched him, and found a pistol on him.
Thorstenson is prohibited from possessing firearms. His prior felony convictions are Distribution or Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana from 2015 in Brookings County, Simple Assault on a Law Enforcement Officer from 2015 in Brookings County, and Simple Assault, Third or Subsequent Offense from 2022 in Minnehaha County.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan McFall prosecuted the case, and U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons announced the sentence.
(Source: U.S. Department of Justice)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于 Sioux Falls 的美国联邦法院大楼入口（400 S. Phillips Avenue）。Tony Webster 摄，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: Entrance of the U.S. Courthouse in Sioux Falls (400 S. Phillips Avenue). By Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
