Hanska man found guilty of drug possession after hiding meth in back seat of squad car

A Hanska man, Dustin Michael Thompson, age 37, was found guilty in Redwood County Court after trying to hide methamphetamine in the back of a law enforcement squad car.

According to Redwood County Attorney Jenna  Peterson, on Jan. 4, 2022,  Thompson was transported from Jackpot Junction  Casino to Brown County. Five days later, on Jan. 9, 2022, officers cleaning out the squad car found a  black magnetic box in the back seat between the door and the cage partition. The box contained a small bag containing a crystal like substance consistent with  methamphetamine, a small bag containing 13 20 MG Sildenafil Citrate pills, two Verizon sim cards,  a 32 gigabit micro SD card, and a receipt from Walmart in New Ulm.  

Officers reviewed squad video from Jan. 4, and observed Thompson take a black  box from inside his pants and stick it in the same area of the squad car where it was later located. Officers confirmed Thompson was the last person in the back seat of that squad car on  Jan. 4, 2022.

Officers also reviewed New Ulm Walmart video surveillance which showed Thompson purchasing Verizon sim cards with cash on Dec. 23, 2021, consistent with  the Walmart receipt located in the black magnetic box. A later forensic analysis completed by the  Bureau of Criminal Apprehension confirmed the crystal like substance located was 2.896 grams of  methamphetamine.  

Thompson was found guilty in Redwood County District Court on Oct. 11 for Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Fifth Degree. He will be sentenced on November 27, at the Redwood County Courthouse.