Man sentenced after distributing meth in Sioux Falls area

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - A Sioux Falls man has been sentenced to more than 13 years in federal prison for distributing methamphetamine and illegally possessing a handgun.

37-year-old Lorenzo Rene Portillo was sentenced Monday to 13 years and five months by Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange following his guilty plea, followed by 5 years of supervised release.

Portillo was a member of a conspiracy distributing more than 500 grams of meth in Sioux Falls between September 2024 and February 2025. He was arrested on February 10, 2025, when authorities searched a residence he was staying in and discovered a handgun, which Portillo was prohibited from possessing due to multiple felony convictions.

Portillo was indicted by a federal grand jury in July 2025 and pleaded guilty on May 5, 2026.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Sioux Falls Police Department investigated the case.