A Cottage Grove woman has been charged with first-degree drug possession after more than a pound of methamphetamine was discovered in her vehicle, authorities say.
Mary Louise Perkins, 54, was arrested when police allegedly found drugs and cash in her vehicle during a July traffic stop.
Police were keeping an eye on Perkins after receiving a tip that she sells meth from her vehicle, according to the criminal complaint filed in Washington County district court
Police stopped Perkins for a traffic violation and found she had methamphetamine and some marijuana on her person, according to the complaint. In a search of the vehicle, officers found five vials of THC, marijuana, drug paraphernalia and nearly $4,000 in addition to the 1.3 pounds of methamphetamine. She told police the drugs belonged to her.
Brian Marquart, gang and drug coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, told Forum News Service in 2017 that a pound of meth was selling for about $100 a gram. At that price, 1.3 pounds would be worth $59,000.
Perkins was convicted of misdemeanor sale of marijuana in 2009.