2 Men Charged In Plymouth High-Grade Marijuana Bust
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Two men are accused of possessing and selling high-grade marijuana after having it transported from California to Minnesota, according to charges filed Wednesday in Hennepin County Court.
Ian Loren Anderson, 23 of Chico, Calif., and William Ian Anderson, 27 of Independence, Minn., were both charged with first-degree sale of 50 kilos or more of marijuana and second-degree possession of 50 kilos or more of marijuana in connection with the case.
According to a criminal complaint, the Plymouth Police Department was contacted by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigations after they were told about a drug operation through a confidential informant. They were told a pick-up truck would be making a delivery of a large amount of marijuana from Chico, Calif., to Plymouth.
The complaint states the customer was identified as William Ian Anderson. Officers responded to the truck's location in South Dakota, and found that there was about 200 pounds of high-grade marijuana inside nine large duffle bags.
According to the complaint, the drugs were to be delivered to the 13000 block of Water Tower Circle in Plymouth on Monday, and that Ian Loren Anderson, William's brother, would be taking the truck and the marijuana. The informant made arrangements with William Anderson in California and told police he had done similar services for him in the past.
Police set up a controlled delivery and conducted surveillance of the area. The complaint states police observed a gold SUV arriving at the location, and Ian Anderson taking control of the pick-up truck from the informant. The truck and SUV then parked nearby, and the duffle bags were switched from the truck to the SUV.
Officers stopped the SUV on I-394, and both men were arrested. The drugs tested positive for high-grade marijuana. It had an estimated street value of about $750,000.
Both men are currently in the Hennepin County Jail. If convicted, they face up to 80 years in prison and more than $1 million in fines.
