Stearns County Man Sentenced To 10 Years For Meth, Firearm Charges

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A career criminal will spend a decade in prison after being convicted on methamphetamine and firearm charges.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says Stearns County resident Samuel Charles Skelton II, 30, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute meth and possession of firearms as a felon.

Court documents showed Skelton sold a pound of meth to an informant in late 2019, then weeks later he was arrested after being surveilled while driving from St. Cloud to the Twin Cities. Authorities say he had more than 3 pounds of meth in his BMW at the time, as well as cocaine, several pills, a scale and multiple flip phones.

Then in April, as investigators were at the scene of an overdose death in Brook Park in Pine County, Skelton pulled up to the residence. His car was soon searched, yielding bags of meth and marijuana, two handguns, two assault-style rifles and five loaded, high-capacity magazines.

After Skelton serves his prison sentence, he will have five years of supervised release.