The jury was selected and opening statements were set to begin Wednesday when a Pequot Lakes man opted to plead guilty to his drug charge.
Erik Charles Knutson, 51, was sentenced to 57 months in the Minnesota Correctional Facility in St. Cloud for third-degree sale of narcotics, a felony. He was ordered to supply a DNA sample and was banned from firearm possession for life.
Knutson was charged with the felony and two other charges following a traffic stop in Pequot Lakes. According to the criminal complaint, a Pequot Lakes police officer was on patrol at 11:05 p.m. Dec. 23, when he observed a vehicle traveling at 63 mph in a 55 mph zone. The officer initiated a traffic stop and identified Knutson as the passenger. The driver was Tracy Ann Oddson, 36, of Pequot Lakes.
The officer observed an opened bag in the back seat containing a large clear bag. Inside the clear bag were what appeared to be several bundles of cash and other smaller bags packed around it. The officer also observed the odor of marijuana. Oddson denied the presence of drugs or cash in the vehicle, the complaint stated.
The officer searched the vehicle and located more than $10,000 in cash inside the clear bag, along with a small black lock box. Inside the lock box were several items, including: three small bags of marijuana totaling 4.14 grams, two bags of methamphetamine totaling 1.8 grams, two hydrocodone pills, several empty unused baggies, a scale, a spoon, a straw and a glass pipe. Several items contained suspected methamphetamine residue.
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The driver then told the officer the drugs in the lock box were for her and Knutson, according to the complaint.
Neither Knutson nor Oddson are strangers to the criminal justice system. Knutson has six prior convictions for controlled substance crimes between 2005 and 2010. Oddson received a stay of adjudication for a fourth-degree possession of a controlled substance in 2013.
In addition to the charges stemming from this incident, Knutson faces charges from two other drug-related incidents in 2016. These matters have not yet been resolved in court.
On July 22, a Brainerd police officer was on routine patrol near Lum Park when he observed two vehicles driving slowly on Lum Park Road, the complaint stated. Neither vehicle apparently indicated a turn as they went north on 15th Avenue. The officer stopped one of the vehicles, which was driven by Knutson.
Knutson allegedly provided an invalid driver's license, and the officer noticed several knives in the vehicle. The officer advised Knutson he would conduct a search, and Knutson was allowed to leave the area. After the search was completed, the officer noticed a large amount of cash was left in the car in Knutson's wallet. The officer was unable to locate Knutson.
Officers later received a phone call that drugs were located in the car. A search warrant was obtained for the vehicle, and located inside the driver's side door was 1.4 grams of a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine.
On Oct. 10, a Baxter police officer performed a traffic stop on a vehicle driven by Knutson. During the stop, the officer was advised Knutson was wanted for pending narcotics charges from the July incident.
The officer took Knutson into custody and on the way to jail, asked Knutson whether he had any illegal contraband. Knutson allegedly replied he had drugs near his crotch area. A search at the jail revealed a sock partially tucked in Knutson's underwear, which contained a glass pipe with white residue and two small baggies of a substance testing positive for methamphetamine, totaling 11.9 grams. Another small baggie contained 1.1 grams of marijuana.
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Court hearings for both of those possession cases are scheduled for 9 a.m. May 1.
Oddson is set to appear March 7 for her charges associated with the December incident.
