Men facing federal drug charges after authorities seize nearly 900 pounds of meth in Minneapolis
Acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson announced Thursday that Joel Casas-Santiago, 46, and Guillermo Mercado-Chaparro, 44, have both been charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Mercado-Chaparro is also charged with illegal reentry by a removed alien.
The two men were arrested and charged after authorities seized nearly 900 pounds of meth from two vehicles earlier this month, charges say. Authorities initially reported 960 pounds of meth had been recovered.
"A 900-pound haul like this doesn't just show intent to distribute. It shows intent to poison entire communities," Thompson said. "We will not let Minnesota become a distribution hub for cartel-scale operations. This prosecution is just the beginning."
Court documents say an undercover police officer bought a pound of meth from Mercado-Chaparro. Through surveillance after the purchase, police learned he was traveling around south Minneapolis to conduct several suspected drug deals.
Several days later, charges say police observed Mercado-Chaparro receive two large bags from his truck's bed and place them in a nearby Jeep.
Authorities eventually stopped the Jeep with Casas-Santiago and Mercado-Chaparro inside. A drug-sniffing dog alerted officers to the odor of drugs. During a search of the Jeep, police found more than 250 pounds of meth, according to charging documents.
Police then obtained a search warrant for Mercado-Chaparro's truck, where they seized more than 630 pounds of meth from the bed, court documents say.
FBI Director Dan Bongino said on social media that the arrests and seizure were part of "a hit targeting drug trafficking rings you'll hear about soon."
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office also charged the men with first-degree drug sales.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Florida officer suspended over viral traffic stop footage
A Florida sheriff's office has suspended an officer who punched a driver in the face during a traffic stop that went viral. William McNeil Jr posted video of himself sitting in his car as the policeman smashed the window, hit him and dragged him to the ground in the city of Jacksonville on 19 February this year. After the clip spread online, police released bodycam footage that shows McNeil, 22, refusing demands to exit the vehicle after being told he has been pulled over for traffic violations. The sheriff's office said a state prosecutor had found no misconduct by the officers, but an internal review was also under way. In a news conference on Monday, Jacksonville Sheriff TK Waters said: "The State Attorney's Office has determined that none of the involved officers violated criminal law, even though the administrative review has yet to be completed." But he said one officer, D Bowers, had been stripped of law-enforcement duties pending a review into whether he violated any of the sheriff's office policies. Sheriff Waters added: "A person must comply with an officer's commands, even if that person disagrees with that officer's reasons for the stop." Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing McNeil, said the incident was "a disturbing reminder" of historical racial violence by police against black Americans. Police released the bodycam footage on Monday, a day after McNeil posted his own clip to Instagram. The bodycam video shows the officer telling McNeil he has been pulled over for not wearing his seatbelt or having his headlights on in inclement weather. "It's daylight, I don't need the lights," says McNeil. He refuses to leave the vehicle and asks to speak to the officer's supervisor before locking the doors. After warning him to get out of the car for about three minutes, the officer smashes the window. The policeman wrote in his arrest report that he called for backup after McNeil refused requests to show his driver's license, registration and proof of insurance. In the arrest report, Officer Bowers wrote: "The suspect was reaching for the floor board of the vehicle where a large knife was sitting." In the video posted to social media by McNeil, his hands are up and visible as police unlock his seatbelt to drag him from the car. It is unclear if his seatbelt was fastened at the time police pulled him over. He pleaded guilty to resisting a police officer without violence and driving on a suspended driver's licence. He was sentenced to two days in jail. In his Instagram video, McNeil said his tooth was chipped and he required stitches to his mouth after the arrest, and suffered a concussion. "This was very hard to do I'm not mentally healed from this but I had to get the word out eventually," he wrote in the video caption.
CNN
4 minutes ago
- CNN
Legal Analyst: Ghislaine Maxwell likely sees ‘quid pro quo' with Trump's DOJ
The Department of Justice says it's reaching out to Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's ex-girlfriend who is now in prison. Legal analyst Temidayo Aganga-Williams says Maxwell likely sees a "quid pro quo" situation.
CBS News
6 minutes ago
- CBS News
Man charged with murder after 78-year-old assaulted in South Philadelphia in December 2024, police say
A man's charges were upgraded to murder after a 78-year-old man who was severely beaten in South Philadelphia in December 2024 later died of his injuries, police announced on Tuesday. Michael Piselli, 38, has upgraded charges of murder and related offenses in the death of Santo Procopio, 78, police said in a news release. Officers responded to a report of a person screaming on the 2600 block of South 10th Street on Dec. 2, 2024, and found Procopio with severe injuries to his head and face. Procopio was immediately taken to Jefferson University Hospital in critical condition, police said. Procopio was pronounced dead on Dec. 14, 2024, after suffering injuries including cuts to the head and chin, facial fractures and brain bleeding. Piselli was identified as the suspect and taken into custody, police said. The investigation revealed that Piselli was acting irrationally in the backyard while in the presence of the person who notified police, police said. Police said Piselli locked the person out of the home, then went into the home and repeatedly assaulted Procopio. The witness told police they saw the attack through the window and said they saw Piselli hitting Procopio while he was lying on the kitchen floor, the release said. Piselli left the area on foot. Police said Piselli was processed at the Special Detention Division, and the Homicide Unit conducted the investigation. The incident remains under investigation.
