A California woman who reportedly possessed 4 pounds of methamphetamine during a traffic stop in June 2017 in Freeborn County was placed on probation for up to 20 years Friday in Freeborn County District Court.

Martina Salazar, 51, was sentenced after she pleaded guilty to third-degree drug possession in October. By pleading guilty to the charge, Salazar admitted possessing at least 10 grams of meth.

She was given a stayed sentence of nearly two years in prison while she is on probation.

While on probation, Judge Steven Schwab ordered Salazar to not use controlled substances, follow all state and federal criminal laws and other court requirements.

“She was driving a rental car with the drugs hidden in the car,” Freeborn County Attorney David Walker said Friday afternoon in an email. “She maintained that she didn’t hide the drugs there. I believe that the evidence proved that she was in possession. As always, the question is whether a jury would find her guilty. She entered an Alford plea, which means that she maintained her innocence but pled guilty because it was likely that the jury would find her guilty if they believed the evidence against her.”

Court documents state Salazar was charged after a Minnesota State Patrol trooper on duty June 19, 2017, received information from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension that a red Ford Escape was heading south from the metro area with suspected meth inside. The vehicle was reportedly traveling to Kentucky.

The trooper reportedly saw the vehicle on Interstate 35 north of Albert Lea and initiated a traffic stop.

Under the dashboard of the vehicle, the trooper found three black, tube-shaped packages. Two were found on the driver’s side of the dashboard, with one on the passenger’s side.

Court documents state one of the packages field-tested for meth and the meth weighed approximately 4 pounds.

 

See what happened last night in the PM report here.