Source: Office of United States Attorneys
PIERRE – United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Eric C. Schulte has sentenced a Lower Brule, South Dakota, man convicted of Possession of a Firearm by a Prohibited Person. The sentencing took place on May 6, 2025.
Stephen Biviano Zapata, age 28, was sentenced to two years and three months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.
Zapata was indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2024. He pleaded guilty on January 27, 2025.
This conviction stems from a traffic stop on March 27, 2024, in Lower Brule, in the Lower Brule Sioux Indian Reservation. Law enforcement was aware Zapata had an outstanding tribal arrest warrant. Upon his arrest officers searched Zapata’s person and vehicle locating three baggies containing methamphetamine, other drug paraphernalia, and an AR-style semi-automatic rifle with two magazines containing 48 rounds of ammunition. Zapata admitted to being a methamphetamine user and submitted a sample for urinalysis testing that was positive for methamphetamine. Zapata is prohibited from possessing firearms based on his drug use.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
This case was investigated by the FBI, the Bureau of Indian Affairs-Office of Justice Services, Lower Brule Agency, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan Dilges prosecuted the case.
Zapata was immediately remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.