Faith Rasmussen's federal drug sentence trimmed

The federal sentence for the girlfriend and drug supplier of a man killed in a botched 2013 drug robbery is ending a lot sooner than 80 months.

Faith Ashley Rasmussen, 23, was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in federal prison in 2014 for her role in a Sioux Falls drug ring. According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website, Rasmussen is scheduled to be released much earlier — on Jan. 29.

Rick Ramstad, Rasmussen’s attorney for federal charges, said he couldn’t comment about the factors that led to her early release.

“I have a lot of empathy for Faith — she was a young person who found herself in a horrible situation and basically had no education and no opportunity, a child to support. And being a survivor she made the choices she felt she had to make,” Ramstad said.

Rasmussen pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Rasmussen was the grieving girlfriend whose boyfriend, Jordan LeBeau, was shot dead in an attempted robbery at his home in December 2013.

Almost a year later, prosecutors charged Rasmussen with setting the plot in motion that led to LeBeau’s death.

However, the case fell to pieces after key witnesses negated their credibility.

Rasmussen pleaded guilty to drug charges in that case and was sentenced to eight years in prison. The sentence runs consecutively to her federal conviction. She will be eligible for parole after serving 13 months.

“My general understanding is she’s obtained this early release because she had fully cooperated with federal investigator,” said Shawn Tornow, who represented Rasmussen in her state case.