Source: United States Department of Justice News
United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced that a Mission, South Dakota, man has been indicted by a federal grand jury for Sexual Abuse, Distribution of a Controlled Substance to a Person Under Age Twenty-One and Assault by Strangulation and Suffocation.
Alexander Brave, age 29, was indicted in August of 2022. He appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mark A. Moreno on September 2, 2022, and pled not guilty to the Indictment.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is up to life in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, up to life of supervised release, and $100 to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The Indictment alleges that in August of 2021, in Todd County, South Dakota, Brave distributed methamphetamine to a victim who was under the age of 21, and that he engaged in a sexual act with that victim while she was incapable of declining participation in the sexual act. The Indictment further alleges that between June of 2021 and October of 2021, in Todd County, Brave engaged in a sexual act with a second victim who had attained the age of 12 years but had not attained the age of 16 years, and that he assaulted the victim by strangling, suffocating, and attempting to do so.
The charges are merely accusations and Brave is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is being conducted by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Albertson is prosecuting the case.
Brave was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending trial. A trial date has not been set.