Police task force seizes 12 pounds of meth
A task force seized a large amount of drugs and cash in Minneapolis Friday, according to Hennepin County Sheriff's Office officials.
Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek said officers with the county's Violent Offender Task Force found 12 pounds of methamphetamine, $150,000 in cash and a semi-automatic handgun. Task force officers also made five arrests, he said.
The street value of the drugs is estimated to be $200,000. The investigation which led to the bust is ongoing.
"This is the largest single seizure of methamphetamine that they have made," Stanek said. "And they have made well over a thousand-plus arrests over the last seven years of violent offenders."
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Stanek said that violent crime in Hennepin County is down 37 percent and credited the task force as one of the main reasons. The task force is made up of police officers from Brooklyn Park, Brooklyn Center, Golden Valley, and Richfield as well as the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The large drug bust will have an impact on dealers and users, Stanek said.
"Folks aren't going to be too happy when they figure out that 12 pounds of their meth was seized and recovered by law enforcement and $150,000-plus in cash - but hopefully it will set them back," he said.
"Otherwise, truly, this methamphetamine drug, this poison that's in our communities would be out and would be across Hennepin County. So if we can get it off the streets, so much the better."