Man sentenced to 60 days for possessing more than 100 pounds of marijuana

ALEXANDRIA — A Minneapolis man was sentenced to serve 60 days in the Douglas County Jail after being arrested with more than 100 pounds of marijuana.

Jonathan Luu Richards, 48, was convicted of a felony controlled substance crime in the second degree — unlawful possession of marijuana in excess of 25 kilograms in a hearing in Douglas County District Court on Feb. 14.

Richards has been given credit for three days time served, and may serve his time in any county in Minnesota at his own expense, according to court documents.

He also has been placed on supervised probation for five years.

Richards' charge stems from an incident that took place in September 2021, where he was arrested after a traffic stop on Interstate 94 two miles west of Alexandria.

Richards was traveling in a vehicle displaying a Washington license plate with rental stickers, according to the statement of probable cause.

The trooper's attention was drawn to the vehicle "due to the current trend of rental vehicles being used to transport large quantities of illegal drugs from the West Coast to the central states," the statement read.

The vehicle was ultimately pulled over because its registration was expired, the statement read.

The trooper deployed his K9 narcotics-detecting dog, Argo, who alerted the trooper to the presence of illegal narcotics, the statement read.

The trooper then searched the vehicle and found 84 vacuum-sealed bags of high-quality marijuana located inside duffel bags, as well as five jars of THC concentrate, the statement read.

The marijuana weighed approximately 105 pounds, the statement read.

A St. Cloud woman has been sentenced for possessing more than 400 grams of methamphetamine.

Ronaisa Rose Kennebeck, 46, was charged with a felony controlled substance crime in the first degree — methamphetamine possession in excess of 100 grams following her arrest in March 2022.

A vehicle tracking warrant was placed on Kennebeck's vehicle in February 2022 following two controlled purchases of methamphetamine by a confidential informant, the statement of probable cause read.

On March 3, 2022, an agent observed Kennebeck traveling westbound on Interstate 94 returning from the metro area, the statement read, and a trooper was alerted to the investigation.

The vehicle in which Kennebeck was traveling was pulled over after agents observed a lit cigarette being thrown from it, the statement read.

The vehicle also drove onto the white fog line and a large crack was observed stretching across the entire windshield, the statement read.

Argo, a K9 narcotics-detecting dog, was deployed around the perimeter of the vehicle once it was pulled over, and Argo alerted the trooper to the presence of narcotics in the vehicle, the statement read.

The contents of a bag field-tested positive for methamphetamine and weighed 422.7 grams, the statement read.

Kennebeck admitted to purchasing the methamphetamine for $4,200, and said she had been traveling to the metro area two or three times per week to purchase one-pound quantities of meth, the statement read.

On Feb. 14 in Douglas County District Court, Kennebeck was committed to the correctional facility in Shakopee for 75 months, with 349 days credit for time served. She also must pay $135 in fees.