Charges: Man Brings Nearly 4 Pounds Of Meth From Calif. To Minn.
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A San Jose, Calif. man has been charged for allegedly attempting to bring nearly four pounds of meth across state lines into Minnesota.
Eddy Antonio Cardenas, 33, faces one count of possession of a controlled substance and one count of felon in possession of firearm.
According to the criminal complaint, on Jan. 28 Minnesota State Patrol stopped a silver Audi with California license plates for having a broken driver's side tail light and window tint that exceeded allowable darkness.
The car had been under visual surveillance by undercover officers for roughly 40 miles before being stopped.
Authorities said upon attempting to stop the car the driver, later identified as Cardenas, did not stop and appeared to try and flee.
When Cardenas eventually pulled the car over he was placed under arrest based on information police had received in regards to him and the contents of the vehicle.
Police said they were told the car was carrying methamphetamine from California to Minnesota. Based on this information, the Minneapolis Drug Task Force was also at the stop.
After the arrest, police searched the car and found three bags of meth and a semiautomatic handgun.
Field testing determined the bags weight 535 grams, 612.8 grams and 598 grams respectively, totaling approximately 3.8 pounds.
Cardenas has a felony assault with a deadly weapon conviction from 2009 and a controlled substance crime conviction from 2005 in California.