WILLMAR -- Jared John Netzke, 22, of New Ulm, and Esteban J. "Stevie" Ramos Jr., 24, of Willmar, made their first court appearances Friday on drug charges for selling methamphetamine to a drug task force informant on Wednesday.
Netzke faces a second-degree drug possession charge in Kandiyohi County District Court. Unconditional bail was set at $150,000 with no conditional bail allowed.
Ramos faces a second-degree drug sale charge in connection to the drug sale, plus charges for fifth-degree drug possession and possession of a pistol or assault weapon by someone convicted of a violent crime. Unconditional bail was set at $200,000 with no conditional bail allowed.
He also faces a first-degree drug sale charge for allegedly selling 12.7 grams of meth on Aug. 20 to an informant for the CEE-VI Drug Task Force. Unconditional bail was set at $300,000 and ordered to be consecutive to the bail amount in the other case.
Both men make their next appearance on March 1.
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According to the complaint against Netzke, a confidential informant for the Brown-Lyon-Redwood Drug Task Force informed agents on Wednesday morning that he could buy meth from Netzke, but that they had to go to Willmar to get the drugs. The informant was provided with $800 for the drugs and drove Netzke to Regency West in Willmar, where Ramos allegedly sold Netzke the drugs. While they were driving back to Brown County, the vehicle was stopped and searched, and the 7.5 grams of meth located in a compact disc case. Netzke agreed to cooperate with agents and told them he'd just bought the drugs from Ramos in the trailer court.
Agents from the CEE-VI Drug Task Force then sought and were granted a search warrant for Ramos' trailer home. The warrant was served at 11 p.m. Wednesday evening and the agents entered the home to find Ramos hiding in the shower, while fully clothed, with a bag of marijuana at his feet. They also noted that the toilet had just flushed, with the bowl still filling with water. They found three baggies, with less than ¼ gram of meth in them, in Ramos' pocket. They also found a digital scale with meth residue and a .22-caliber handgun and magazine.
The charges for the Aug. 20 drug sales allege that the informant purchased a total of 12.7 grams of meth from Ramos in three separate purchases, made along Lakeland Drive Southeast, along the 1600 block of U.S. Highway 12 East and in the park next to Lincoln Elementary School.
