MINNEAPOLIS — A North Dakota man has been indicted for conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, United States Attorney Andrew M. Luger announced this week. The case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Pipestone County Sheriff’s Office, the Buffalo Ridge Drug Task Force, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Jake Noland Northern, 45, also known as “Jake Noal Northern,” was indicted in September and made his first appearance in U.S. District Court on Oct. 8. Northern was ordered detained pending trial, a news release said. Northern pleaded not guilty, court documents said.

According to the indictment, Northern conspired with others to distribute fentanyl between February 2023 and April 21, 2023. In 2010, Northern was convicted in federal court in North Dakota for conspiracy to distribute cocaine. As a result of that conviction, he would be subject to increased punishment for the new charges, the indictment said.