Fort Thompson Man Sentenced to 2 Years in Federal Prison for Abusive Sexual Contact

PIERRE - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced a man from Fort Thompson, South Dakota, convicted of Abusive Sexual Contact. The sentencing took place on September 22, 2025.

John Thompson, age 44, was sentenced to two years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Thompson was indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2024. He pleaded guilty on June 20, 2025. The conviction stemmed from an incident that occurred between August 1, 2010, and August 31, 2011, within the Crow Creek Sioux Indian Reservation. During this timeframe, Thompson fondled the genitalia of a boy who was under the age of twelve.

This matter was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office because the Major Crimes Act, a federal statute, mandates that certain violent crimes alleged to have occurred in Indian Country be prosecuted in Federal court as opposed to State court.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the DOJ's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Justice Services - Crow Creek Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney Troy R. Morley prosecuted the case.

Thompson was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.