South Dakota governor’s office reports helping with over 800 deportations as feds deliver funding

South Dakota troopers have assisted in more than 204 immigration-related arrests, and state National Guard soldiers have helped process 807 deportations as the state continues to expand its partnership with federal immigration authorities. 

The update came as Gov. Larry Rhoden announced that President Donald Trump’s administration has provided $150,418 to the state to recoup the costs associated with the South Dakota Highway Patrol’s collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Under the terms of an agreement signed in the spring of 2025, state troopers are authorized to carry out some federal immigration enforcement duties. 

The money will go toward payroll, and specialized equipment and technology for the Highway Patrol’s enforcement work. The state expects additional funding as operations continue, according to a news release from Rhoden’s office. 

In May, Rhoden issued a press release saying the federal government had committed to reimbursing the state $165,000. The South Dakota Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond to a question about the total cost of immigration-related enforcement for the state patrol.

Rhoden’s immigration enforcement push, which also loops in the state Department of Corrections and the South Dakota National Guard, is part of a law enforcement undertaking dubbed “Operation Prairie Thunder.” It features periodic saturation patrols by state troopers, 14 of which have taken place in 11 cities across South Dakota since last July. Initial operations focused on Sioux Falls.

“Our partnership with ICE has delivered strong results, and I look forward to continuing to partner with the Trump Administration as we work to keep South Dakota strong, safe, and free,” Rhoden said in the press release.

The governor’s office said 40 Highway Patrol troopers are participating in the program. That’s more than double the number trained in mid-May, when Rhoden announced plans to fold more troopers into the program.

The 204 trooper-assisted apprehensions of people who reportedly lacked legal status is a jump from May, when the state said Highway Patrol reported 150 arrests.

The Corrections Department, meanwhile, has paroled 25 people into ICE custody for deportation. Four more people incarcerated by the state were approved for release into federal custody by the parole board in June, Rhoden’s office said, and the board will consider four more cases in July. 

Each person released from state custody saves the state an average of $34,000 per year, Rhoden’s office said.

Seven South Dakota National Guard soldiers have also remained deployed in Sioux Falls and Rapid City since the fall to help ICE process deportations. National Guard-assisted deportation processing starting in May 2025 rose from 664 through mid-May to 807 as of Tuesday.

The state Department of Public Safety did not immediately respond to a request for the total number of people deported from South Dakota since the state began coordinating with ICE.

Some of the people whose ICE deportations were aided by the state National Guard may not have been living in South Dakota, Rhoden spokesperson Josie Harms told Searchlight, as they could’ve been apprehended while traveling through the state.

ICE did not respond to a request for comment on the total number of people deported from South Dakota since Trump took office.