Posted 1/2/02
Houston man faces federal drug charges
By Shannon McKinney
Argus News Reporter
A Houston man, Jeffrey James Strelow, 49, is facing federal drug charges for conspiracy and possessing of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.
The case is being prosecuted by the United States Attorneyís Office because of the amount of methamphetamine involved. ìIt was over a pound, which is a lot,î explained Assistant U.S. Attorney David J. MacLaughlin, who is prosecuting the case. ìWe only take certain cases. The penalties are unbelievably high,î he said.
The minimum sentence if convicted is 10 years in prison. Strelow and another man, John McDonald Kelley, 52, of Bakersfield, California, were indicted on December 11 by a federal grand jury
Strelow and Kelley were arrested in Bloomington on November 14. The day before, the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force) received information that Kelley was scheduled to fly into Minneapolis to sell a pound of methamphetamine to Strelow. According to the complaint, a DEA agent observed Kelley check into a hotel at approximately 2:20 p.m. on November 14 and then 20 minutes later, Strelow arrived.
A Bloomington police officer conducted a traffic stop on Strelow after he left the hotel, obtained consent to search his vehicle and found a cylinder shaped package of approximately one pound of methamphetamine and $7,000 in cash, according to the complaint.
Another pound of methamphetamine and $14,000 in cash was found in Kelleyís hotel room.
MacLaughlin said the street value for a pound of methamphetamine is over $10,000.
The two are charged with having approximately two pounds of methamphetamine and over $20,000 in cash.
If convicted, any sentences would be determined by a Federal Judge based on the federal sentencing guidelines.
The indictment resulted from an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Houston County Sheriffís Office.