Minnesota man charged with possession

A Minnesota man has been charged with possession after both methamphetamine and marijuana were found on his person and in his vehicle during a traffic stop.

On October 4, a Wyoming Highway Patrol trooper was patrolling U.S. Hwy 212 near milepost 16 when he saw a vehicle traveling east at a high rate of speed. Traffic radar recorded the speed at 85 mph in a 70 mph zone.

The trooper reports that he turned his car around and observed the suspect vehicle pull over to the shoulder of the road even before he activated his emergency lights. The trooper initiated a traffic stop and approached the vehicle.

The driver, Brian James, allegedly claimed to be a salesman heading for Rapid City with his goods.

As the trooper approached, he reports smelling a strong odor of freshly sprayed air freshener. As it dissipated, it was replaced by the odor of raw marijuana.

The trooper asked James to accompany him back to the patrol car, where he asked about the marijuana. James allegedly suggested the trooper was smelling cigarettes.

The trooper ran a check, which showed James had a current warrant out of Nebraska for possession of marijuana, and the warrant advised that he had a history of failing to appear or comply with the citation. His Minnesota driver’s license was also revoked.

The trooper performed a pat search of James before searching his vehicle and allegedly found a glass pipe that can be used to smoke meth in each cargo pant pocket and a large bindle bag of meth. James allegedly admitted the product was meth; the trooper estimated the weight to be around 10 grams, well in excess of the 3 gram limit over which Wyoming statutes designate possession to be a felony.

A search of the van allegedly revealed a black zipper case with loose marijuana all over it and dozens of items of packaging and other marijuana paraphernalia, as well as multiple plastic bags of suspected marijuana.

James has been charged with felony possession of methamphetamine and misdemeanor counts of possession of marijuana, speeding and driving without a license.