FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2025

Contact: Tony Mangan, Communications Director, 605-773-6878

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley announces five smoke shop owners statewide have been indicted after a law enforcement sting uncovered the sale of illegal products in their businesses.

The operation, conducted by the Attorney General’s Office and the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), in partnership with local law enforcement agencies, targeted shops suspected of selling products that violated state and federal law.

“This operation should serve as a warning to stop selling dangerous drugs in our communities,” said Attorney General Jackley. “We will continue working with our local law enforcement partners to protect our communities and keep our streets safe from dangerous and illegal products.”

Those indicted are:

*** Brown County: Emad Zuhair Wazwaz, 31, Blaine, MN, doing business as All the Smoke, Aberdeen. Two misdemeanor counts of Possession, Sale, and Distribution of Substance for Purpose of Intoxication, a maximum sentence of one year in the county jail and a $2,000 fine; and one misdemeanor count of Sale or Distribution of Chemical Modified or Converted Industrial Hemp, a maximum sentence of 30 days in the county jail and a $500 fine, for each count.

*** Hughes County: Bristol Nielsen, 29, Pierre/Ft. Pierre, doing business as Masterpiece Smoke Shop, Pierre. One felony count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Marijuana of more than One Pound, a maximum sentence of 15 years in the state penitentiary (with a 30-day mandatory minimum and $30,000 fine; one felony count of Possession with Intent to Distribute or Dispense a Controlled Substance (psilocin), a maximum sentence of 10 years in the state penitentiary (with a mandatory minimum of one year) and $20,000 fine; one felony count of Violation of a Drug Free Zone, a maximum sentence of 10 years in the state penitentiary (with a mandatory minimum of five years) and a $20,000 fine; one felony count of Keeping a Place for the Use or Sale of a Controlled Substance, a maximum sentence of five years in the state penitentiary and a $10,000 fine; and one misdemeanor count of Possession, Sale or Distribution of Substance for Purpose of Intoxication, one year in the county jail and a $2,000 fine.

*** Lincoln County: Saleh Jabr-Saleh Al Names, 26, Sioux Falls, doing business as Puff City, Sioux Falls. Three misdemeanor counts of Possession, Sale or Distribution of a Substance for Purpose of Intoxication, a maximum sentence of one year in the county jail and a $2,000 fine for each count and one misdemeanor count of Sale, Distribution of Chemical Modified or Converted Industrial Hemp, 30 days in the county jail and a $500 fine.

*** Minnehaha County: Gamal Yahya Abdull Suhail, 35, Sioux Falls, doing business as Blazin Aces Smokes & Vape, Sioux Falls. Four misdemeanor counts of Possession, Sale or Distribution of a Substance for Purpose of Intoxication, a maximum sentence of one year in the county jail and a $2,000 fine for each count. 

*** Pennington County: Benjamin Rodriguez, 32, Spearfish, doing business as ZyGlam Smoke Shop, Rapid City. One misdemeanor count of  Industrial Hemp for Smoking Prohibited, a maximum sentence of one year in the county jail and a $2,000 fine; and one count of Sale or Distribution of a Substance for Purpose of Intoxication, a maximum sentence of one year in the county jail and a $2,000 fine.

Undercover officers conducted controlled buys of products within the five stores between June 11 and June 13, 2025. The cases will be prosecuted by the South Dakota Attorney General’s Office.

The suspects are presumed innocent under the U.S. Constitution.

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