2 men charged with having ‘staggering’ amount of meth in their vehicles in Minneapolis

Two men were caught in Minneapolis and have been charged with possessing nearly 900 pounds of methamphetamine in what local and federal law enforcement are touting as a significant bust with ties to Mexican drug cartels.

In connection with the massive meth seizure Monday in south Minneapolis, Guillermo Mercado Chaparro, 44, of Chicago stands charged in Hennepin County District Court with two counts of first-degree drug trafficking. Joel Casas-Santiago, 46, of Minneapolis is charged with one count of first-degree drug trafficking.

Chaparro and Casas-Santiago remain jailed in lieu of $2 million each ahead of their court appearances Wednesday afternoon. Court records do not list an attorney for either man.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement that “the amount of illicit drugs recovered in this case is staggering. These drugs were on our streets in huge quantities and nearly made it into the hands of our neighbors who struggle with drug use.

“The damage 900 pounds of methamphetamine could have caused is devastating, all while funding drug sale organizations that prey on our community.”

Deputy FBI Director Dan Bongino went on X and praised the “hit targeting drug trafficking rings. ... We’re finding them and crushing their operations.”

The St. Paul Police Department, also on X, said the operation involving its officers, the Ramsey County Violent Crime Enforcement Team and federal law enforcement pulled off what “might ... be the largest drug bust in Minnesota.”

Law enforcement recently unearthed 900 pounds of meth tucked into large metal spools in a Burnsville storage unit. That discovery sparked searches by federal agents in eight places across the metro early last month, part of what they called a “large and ongoing investigation” into a transnational drug and human trafficking ring.

Mexican cartels continue to use Minnesota as their hub for methamphetamine in the Upper Midwest. As the price of meth has plummeted in recent years, it has become a cheaper, more plentiful option for dealers, and bigger federal busts have followed. Seizures measuring in hundreds of pounds are no longer an anomaly.

The charges against Chaparro and Casas-Santiago emphasized that both are “associated with larger drug sales organizations in Mexico.”

According to the charges:

On July 2, an undercover officer bought 1 pound of meth from Chaparro in south Minneapolis. After the purchase, the officer watched Chaparro drive around the city in a pickup truck and make more drug deals. Officers were given court permission to attach a GPS tracking device on the pickup.

Late Monday morning, officers saw Chaparro walk to the pickup and put two large bags in an SUV parked nearby. Casas-Santiago got in the SUV, and both men drove off in their vehicles.

Officers tailed both vehicles in south Minneapolis and saw the pickup parked and unoccupied. They soon found both men in the SUV at Cedar Avenue S. and E. 31st Street. A drug-sniffing dog hit on the odor of illicit narcotics coming from the SUV. Officers seized 251 pounds of meth from the vehicle.

The officers returned to the pickup, where they found 638 pounds of meth.

Combined, the 889 pounds of meth had a retail street value of $1.7 million if sold by the pound, charges said.

The value was based on the roughly $1,912 the undercover agent paid for the pound of meth he bought on July 2, the County Attorney’s Office said.