Two people were charged Friday in connection with what officials called the largest marijuana bust in western Wisconsin.
The arrests followed the confiscation of 650 pounds of marijuana from a warehouse in the La Crosse area, which originated in New Mexico, Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman said.
“It was a pretty large-scale operation,” Drug Enforcement Administration agent Jeanne Hehr said.
Investigators estimate the street value of the marijuana to be at least $650,000.
DEA agents in New Mexico first learned of the source, Ralph Manuel Villegas of El Paso, Texas, from an informant in May. Altman said Villegas possessed as much as 10,000 pounds of Mexican marijuana that may have been delivered to a warehouse in Holmen, Wis., since 1998. Gale Francis Kleman of Sleepy Eye, Minn., is accused of taking the drugs from Holmen to St. Paul, Minn., where most of their customers live.
Police arrested Villegas, 48, Kleman, 50, and the warehouse owner Thursday. The federal court charged Villegas and Kleman with conspiring to distribute at least 2,200 pounds of marijuana. The warehouse owner was released after his arrest, but the U.S. Attorney said he the owner would probably be charged later in connection with the conspiracy.
“This bust shows the importance of the drug operation and cooperation within the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration,” Hehr said.
The U.S. Attorney’s office has been fighting the drug problem in Wisconsin by “prosecuting cases like these,” Altman added.
Over the last five years, 12,000 pounds of marijuana have been seized.
“I think [marijuana] is a tremendous problem here in Wisconsin,” Hehr said. “I think people who get on stronger drugs, like heroin, start with marijuana and then want more and more.”
Most cases involving these enormous amounts of marijuana typically occur in border states such as Texas or California where the supply is closer to the destination. However, this bust shows the growing demand for marijuana in Wisconsin and the surrounding area.
University of Wisconsin senior Angie Osphus said it is easy to obtain marijuana in Wisconsin and in the city. She said there are “quite a few” people who distribute it.
“If you’ve smoked for a while, you know who to go to and where to get it,” Osphus said.
She added that officials should concentrate on busting harder drugs, like heroin and methamphetamine, and not so much on marijuana.
“I think it’s more important to concentrate on other drug problems that have bigger effects,” Osphus said.
If convicted, Villegas and Kleman each face maximum penalties of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
