RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — A South Dakota feedlot operator who pleaded guilty to operating a Ponzi cattle scheme has been sentenced to nearly eight years in prison.

Prosecutors said Robert Blom, of Corsica, resold the same cattle to multiple investors and made a profit of about $24 million from 2014 to 2019. He resold cattle he didn’t have, falsified invoices and used the money to pay back prior investors.

Blom was sentenced to 91 months in prison on charges of wire fraud and money laundering. As part of a plea bargain, 30 other counts were dropped.

Judge Karen Schreier told Blom that she grew up on a farm and her