A 50 year old man from Crooks is sitting in a federal prison following his conviction of Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. The sentencing took place on Monday.
Cary Ludens was sentenced to 13 years and 3 months in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Ludens was indicted for Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance by a federal grand jury in February 2025. He pleaded guilty on March 2, 2026.
The U-S Attorney’s Office reported Ludens was involved in a drug trafficking organization that obtained methamphetamine from Arizona and distributed those drugs throughout South Dakota. The group trafficked the drugs both through the U.S. Mail and via cross-country car trips.
Investigators became aware of the group and seized a methamphetamine-laden package that contained over four pounds of methamphetamine in December 2024. Investigators later seized two parcels sent from Sioux Falls to Arizona containing a combined total of approximately $26,000.
Ludens’ role in the conspiracy was as a distributor who obtained methamphetamine from a co-conspirator in South Dakota and then distributed it to others. Investigators determined that Ludens was responsible for distributing approximately 22 pounds of methamphetamine during his involvement in the conspiracy.
The Sioux Falls Area Drug Task Force and the United States Postal
Inspection Service Criminal Investigations investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Hodges prosecuted the case.
Ludens was immediately remanded to the custody of the U-S Marshal’s Service to begin serving his sentence.