Petan Milk, a 37-year-old Native American man, was a father to a son and daughter, a brother, and a son himself. Born in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, he made his home in Rapid City. His life was cut short on August 20, 2022, when he and another man, 29-year-old Joseph Standing Bear, were found shot to death inside an apartment on Surfwood Drive.
The double homicide was the result of a planned attack.
Prosecutors later presented evidence that the killings were gang-related retaliation for another man's death 11 days earlier. On the day of the murders, a group of eight people drove to the apartment building. Five of them went inside after a juvenile who was known to one of the victims was sent to the door to get them to open it. Once inside, one of the intruders, Montell Olivera, shot Mr. Standing Bear and Mr. Milk multiple times. One victim was shot as he sat in a chair, while the other was asleep on a couch. The entire attack, from entry to exit, lasted just over a minute before the group fled in a waiting car.
An extensive investigation led to the arrests of multiple suspects in the days and weeks that followed. In total, eight individuals were charged in connection with the homicides. The last person to be apprehended was Dillon Wilson, who was arrested in Sioux Falls in March 2024 after being a fugitive for more than a year and a half.
Before the main trial, several co-defendants reached agreements with prosecutors. Chase Quick Bear, who was initially charged with murder, pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of aiding and abetting aggravated assault. The cases for two individuals who were minors at the time of the crime were handled in the juvenile justice system. The remaining defendants who took plea deals agreed to testify for the state.
In February 2026, three people stood trial for the murders. After two weeks of testimony, a Pennington County jury convicted Montell Olivera of two counts of first-degree murder and one count of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. His co-defendants, Dillon Wilson and Erin Provancial, were each convicted of two counts of aiding and abetting first-degree murder and one count of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.
The case concluded with sentencing in March 2026. Montell Olivera, the man identified as the shooter, received three life sentences. Dillon Wilson and Erin Provancial were each sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
