Peever Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Aggravated Assault of Domestic Partner

SIOUX FALLS - United States Attorney Alison J. Ramsdell announced today that U.S. District Judge Charles B. Kornmann has sentenced a Peever, South Dakota, man, convicted of Assault Resulting in Substantial Bodily Injury. The sentencing took place on July 10, 2023, in Aberdeen, South Dakota.

Norbit Bellonger IV, age 23, was sentenced to five years in federal prison (the statutory maximum), followed by three years of supervised release. He was ordered to pay $100 as a statutorily required special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

Bellonger was indicted for Assault of an Intimate and Dating Partner by Strangulation and Suffocation, Assault with a Dangerous Weapon, and Assault Resulting in Substantial Bodily Injury by a federal grand jury in December of 2022. He pleaded guilty to Assault Resulting in Substantial Bodily Injury on April 11, 2023.

According to court documents, in August of 2022, Bellonger committed an aggravated assault against the victim, who was a dating partner of Bellonger. Bellonger assaulted the victim by striking and strangling her. The victim sustained substantial injuries to her neck and face, among other places, as a result of the assault. 

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate Sioux Tribe’s Law Enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeremy R. Jehangiri prosecuted the case.

Bellonger was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service to continue serving his sentence.