A cocaine-supplying network authorities say was operating out of Faribault has been dismantled after a months-long investigation that ended with search warrants, four arrests and the seizure of nearly a pound of cocaine, roughly $15,000 in cash and six firearms. Three Faribault residents now face felony drug sale charges, while a fourth person taken into custody was wanted on an unrelated warrant.
How the Investigation Unfolded
The case began this summer when the Cannon River Drug and Violent Offender Task Force received information about drug distribution in the Faribault area, according to krocnews.com. Agents say they identified a cocaine-supplying network feeding buyers in surrounding communities and pinpointed three people allegedly involved in the distribution, then made multiple controlled purchases of cocaine from them before moving on search warrants.
Those warrants were carried out simultaneously on Sept. 17 at residences in both Faribault and Owatonna, with a follow-up search warrant executed on Sept. 23, per the same report. Agents also located a home in Owatonna that they say was being used to store drugs — a detail confirmed by southernminn.com, which reported the alleged stash house was located on the 200 block of Woodland Drive in Owatonna.
What Agents Found Inside the Stash House
Inside the Owatonna residence, agents seized 396 grams of cocaine packaged in individual bags weighing less than one gram each, the outlet's report states. At a Faribault residence, agents also found $14,671 in cash tucked inside a safe in the bedroom belonging to 46-year-old Taiwan McCain, along with two shotgun shells discovered in a dresser drawer, according to the same account. Altogether, the operation netted nearly a pound of cocaine, about $15,000 in cash and six firearms, as KIMT reported.
Charges Filed Against Three Faribault Residents
McCain, of Faribault, faces charges of selling a controlled substance in Steele County, along with possessing a controlled substance and being a prohibited person in possession of guns and ammunition in Rice County, per KIMT's reporting. Also charged with selling a controlled substance in Rice County were 35-year-old Tanna Almen and 31-year-old Laura Gil Serrano, both of Faribault. The operation produced three felony drug sale charges in total, KIMT noted, while the fourth person arrested was wanted on an unrelated warrant and was not identified in the news release, per krocnews.com.
A Multi-Agency Effort
The Cannon River Drug and Violent Offender Task Force describes itself as a partnership of law enforcement officers and investigators from Rice and Le Sueur counties and participating police departments, working to investigate drug trafficking and violent crime across jurisdictional boundaries, according to KIMT. The search-warrant operation drew assistance from the South Central Drug Investigations Unit, the Owatonna Police Department, the Faribault Police Department, the Rice County Sheriff's Office, the Le Sueur County Sheriff's Office and the Northfield Police Department.
McCain's name has surfaced in a separate, earlier case reported by southernminn.com, in which he and two other men faced charges in Juneau County, Wisconsin, for allegedly transporting more than 40 grams of cocaine, with a state trooper reportedly finding $2,512 and a half-brick of cocaine in a vehicle during a traffic stop. That case is distinct from the current Minnesota investigation and does not reflect its outcome.
