Willmar man to serve nearly eight years for selling methamphetamine

Susan Lunneborg, West Central Tribune, Willmar, Minn.
·2 min read

Jun. 24—WILLMAR

— A Willmar man was sentenced this week to more than eight years in prison for selling methamphetamine.

Sergio Ramos, 46, pleaded guilty to first-degree drug sale and was sentenced Tuesday in Kandiyohi County District Court to 98 months in prison.

Judge Stephen Wentzell ordered fines and fees totaling $140, and Ramos was given credit for 180 days already served.

Under Minnesota law, offenders are required to serve at least two-thirds of a sentence in custody and may be allowed to serve the remaining time on supervised release.

Two other felony second-degree drug charges — for possession of methamphetamine and of fentanyl — were dismissed as part of the plea agreement. A gross misdemeanor charge of driving after cancellation was also dismissed.

The CEE-VI Drug and Gang Task Force began surveillance of Ramos in December 2021, after receiving information a month prior that Ramos was in the Willmar area and was a "large supplier of controlled substances," according to the criminal complaint.

Agents obtained a search warrant for a residence, a vehicle used by Ramos and Ramos himself.

Following a Dec. 23, 2021, traffic stop, officers searched Ramos and found multiple knives in his pocket and U.S. currency totaling $3,827.

According to the complaint, an inventory of items seized from the vehicle included baggies of methamphetamine, methamphetamine paraphernalia and containers of nearly 200 suspected fentanyl pills with the "M-30" imprint on them.

Items that tested positive for methamphetamine also were found in the home.

The total weight of the suspected methamphetamine found in the vehicle was 45 grams. It was prepackaged and appeared ready for sale, according to the complaint.

Ramos' criminal history includes a March 2009 conviction for fifth-degree controlled substance possession and a June 2019 conviction for fourth-degree possession with intent to sell, according to the complaint. A prison sentence was stayed on the first conviction, and he served a 30-month sentence on the second.