Three Pounds of Meth Seized in Stearns County Traffic Stop, Melrose Man Charged

(KNSI) – A Melrose man is facing a first-degree felony drug charge after investigators say they seized more than three pounds of methamphetamine during a traffic stop in Stearns County.

The Central Minnesota Violent Offender Task Force made the stop in Richmond on Monday, as part of an ongoing investigation into meth sales in the region. The driver was identified as 28-year-old Rodolfo Ramirez Jr.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Stearns County District Court, task force investigators learned earlier that day that Ramirez was believed to be holding a large amount of meth, and that investigators believed his source of supply was sending multiple pounds of the drug through the mail.

Investigators set up surveillance and say they watched Ramirez meet with several people at a location in Stearns County. During one of those meetings, the complaint says Ramirez handed off 452.96 grams of meth to another person while investigators watched the exchange.

Ramirez drove away afterward and was stopped a short time later. A search warrant was executed on the vehicle, and investigators say they recovered another 1,060.76 grams of methamphetamine inside. In total, law enforcement reports seizing 1,513.72 grams, roughly 3.3 pounds.

Court records show Ramirez has a prior first-degree controlled substance possession conviction out of Stearns County dating to October 5th, 2022. Because of that conviction, the charge carries a mandatory minimum of just over five years in prison and a maximum of 40 years and a $1,000,000 fine.

His record goes back further. Since 2016, he’s been convicted of drug crimes six times, including the 2022 case, along with one burglary and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

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