2 men sentenced to prison for 64-pound meth bust at luxury apartment in Minneapolis

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A federal judge sentenced two men to up to prison time Thursday after investigators found 64 pounds of methamphetamine, three pounds of heroin, unidentified pills, two loaded handguns and a large amount of cash while executing a search warrant at a luxury apartment in downtown Minneapolis earlier this year. 

Gonzalo Jiminez-Paz Jr., 23, and Rey David Luna-Santillanes, 23, were sentenced to to 14 years and 5 1/4 years in prison respectively for conspiring to possess and distribute meth. 

According to the charges, investigators with the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office Violent Crime Enforcement Team executed a search warrant at 111 South Marquette Avenue on March 23. 

In the apartment, investigators found approximately 64 pounds of methamphetamine in two suitcases. They also recovered three pounds of heroin hidden in a shoebox, a bag containing unidentified blue pills, two loaded handguns and a large amount of cash in a kitchen cupboard. 

They arrested both Jiminez-Paz and Luna-Santillanes, who were in the apartment at the time. 

In their guilty pleas, the men admitted they and several other individuals were planning to distribute the meth. 

“Mr. Jiminez-Paz ran a significant drug trafficking operation here in Minnesota,” U.S. Attorney Erica MacDonald said in a statement. “He employed a network of distributors, including his co-defendant Mr. LunaSantillanes, who helped push dangerous drugs into our cities. This type of criminal activity threatens the health and safety of our communities and will be met with lengthy prison sentences.” 

In addition to prison time, Jiminez-Paz also received five years of supervised release and Luna-Santillanes received two.