Attorney General Jackley Proposes Legislation To Strengthen State’s Digital Cryptocurrency Investigations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026

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

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley plans to introduce legislation in the 2026 South Dakota Legislature that would allow law enforcement to seize digital Cryptocurrency accounts that are part of criminal investigations.

“Cryptocurrency has become a haven for scammers, drug traffickers, and human traffickers, costing South Dakotans millions in losses and fueling online crime,” said Attorney General Jackley.  “This legislation adds ‘digital currency’ to South Dakota’s seizure laws, giving law enforcement the tools to confiscate illicit crypto assets and disrupt criminal networks hiding behind digital secrecy.”

Based on the FBI's 2024 Internet Crimes Complaint Center (IC3) report, in South Dakota there was $13.8 million in cryptocurrency related losses reported to IC3 in 2024 alone. The losses were the result of crime types such as romance scams, extortion, government impersonation scams, and investment scams. Victims older than 60 years old accounted for $7.8 million in reported losses for 2024.

This is the 10th bill that Attorney General Jackley will file in the legislative session which starts next Tuesday

Once filed, the Attorney General’s bills can be found here:

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Link to the first three releases regarding AG’s legislative bills can be found here:

https://atg.sd.gov/OurOffice/Media/pressreleasesdetail.aspx?id=2974#gsc.tab=0

https://atg.sd.gov/OurOffice/Media/pressreleasesdetail.aspx?id=2975#gsc.tab=0

https://atg.sd.gov/OurOffice/Media/pressreleasesdetail.aspx?id=2979#gsc.tab=0