The Free Press, Mankato, MN

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November 20, 2009

Drug deal nets three

By Dan Nienaber

MANKATO — One day after finishing a jail sentence for a drug sales conviction in June, a Mankato man was back in custody this week after allegedly selling an ounce of cocaine to an undercover police officer.

Andra Artez Jones Jr., who had been released from the Blue Earth County Jail Tuesday, was one of three people arrested Wednesday during the sting set up by the Minnesota River Valley Drug Task Force.

The person who was the focus of the sting was actually 22-year-old Jeffrey John Schwichtenberg of Mankato. He had agreed to sell the ounce of cocaine to the task force investigator for $1,150, the criminal complaint said. The deal was set up to take place at Schwichtenberg’s residence in the 500 block of Joseph Path.

Another investigator who arrived at the residence early to do surveillance saw two people, later identified as Jones and 22-year-old Kody James Johnson of Mankato, bring something to Schwichtenberg’s house. One of the men went inside while the other drove slowly around the area, the complaint said.

The same car and same two people were parked nearby when the investigator who set up the deal pulled into Schwichtenberg’s driveway. Schwichtenberg came out to the investigator’s car to exchange a powdery substance, which later tested positive for cocaine, for the cash, which was marked.

When the car Jones and Johnson were traveling in was stopped later, they had all but $50 of the marked bills, the complaint said.

All three men appeared in Blue Earth County District Court Friday morning for felony charges of first-degree drug sales. Jones’ bail was set at $100,000 with conditions, Schwichtenberg’s at $5,000 with conditions, and Johnson was released on his own recognizance.

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