Detroit men convicted of distributing drugs on North Dakota Indian reservations

FARGO (KVRR) – Two men have been convicted of helping lead a drug trafficking organization that targeted three of North Dakota’s Native American Reservations.

U.S. Attorney Jennifer Puhl says Baquan Sledge, a.k.a Rell, a.k.a TJ, a.k.a Matthew Pierce, was convicted of Continuing Criminal Enterprise, Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance, Possession with Intent to Distribute Oxycodone, and Maintaining a Drug-Involved Premise.

Darius Sledge, a.k.a Ace, a.k.a Man Man, a.k.a Frank Love, a.k.a Gary, a.k.a Bill, was convicted of Continuing Criminal Enterprise, Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess with Intent to Distribute a Controlled Substance, Possession with Intent to Distribute Oxycodone, and Maintaining a Drug-Involved Premise.

Prosecutors say the operation “targeted areas with fewer law enforcement resources where they could distribute controlled substances at a premium price.”

The case is part of “Operation Blue Prairie,” an Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation into the multi-state trafficking of oxycodone.