Two men were taken into custody on Monday after law enforcement seized roughly 900 pounds of suspected methamphetamine worth approximately $1.7 million in what authorities are calling “one of the largest meth busts in Minnesota history.”
“[Nine hundred pounds] of meth seized during two traffic stops in Minnesota yesterday, in a hit targeting drug trafficking rings you’ll hear about soon,” FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino wrote in a post on X on Tuesday. “We’re finding them and crushing their operations. More to come. Thanks to our [U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration] partners for the coordination.”
According to FOX 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul, two men, Joel Casas-Santiago, 46, and Guillermo Mercado Chaparro, 44, are facing charges for their suspected involvement in the crime.
An undercover police officer allegedly purchased meth from Chaparro last week, and officials obtained a court order to track his pickup truck, according to FOX 9, citing the criminal complaint.
On Monday, investigators observed Chaparro loading two bags into a Jeep parked beside his pickup truck. Casas-Santiago apparently got into the Jeep, and the two men drove away in their vehicles.
Police later spotted and searched the Jeep, discovering 251 pounds of probable methamphetamine. Law officials subsequently secured a warrant for the pickup truck, which contained an additional 638 pounds of methamphetamine as well as a drug ledger, according to Fox 9.
Chaparro allegedly acknowledged drug trafficking, and authorities believe both individuals are affiliated with a larger criminal network based in Mexico, according to FOX 9.
Casas-Santiago has been charged with one crime of first-degree meth sale within 90 days, while Chaparro faces two counts of first-degree meth sale within 90 days.
“… In Minneapolis, [Violent Crime Enforcement Teams] arrested two men and seized the massive drug load — possibly one of the largest meth busts in Minnesota history,” the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday. “Both suspects have been charged with controlled substance crimes.”
Bongino also took to X earlier this week with numbers he claims show that the FBI’s increased focus on violent crime and illegal immigration “is working.”
Over the last few months, the FBI has captured 22% more illicit drugs than in the same period last year, including more than 97,000 pounds of cocaine, 7,000 pounds of meth, and 2,500 pounds of fentanyl, he said.
