Buffalo Man Charged For Possession Of Oxycodone Pills | Public Safety

John Paul Collette, 69, Buffalo, was charged in Morrison County District Court with one felony count of fifth-degree possession of a controlled substance.

The charge stems from a Jan. 17 incident during which, at 12:36 p.m., a trooper from the Minnesota State Patrol was observing traffic traveling northbound on Highway 10 near Royalton. According to the criminal complaint, is attention was drawn to a Mercedes traveling in the right lane of traffic because the front seat male passenger slumped down in his seat. Additionally, it did not appear the passenger was wearing a seat belt and the vehicle was speeding.

The trooper activated his emergency lights and stopped the vehicle. When he made contact with the occupants, he noticed the male passenger had “constricted pupils and bloodshot eyes,” consistent with recent drug use, according to the report. The male driver also had “extremely bloodshot eyes and appeared to be fatigued.”

The trooper noted that several indicators in his training and experience led him to believe the occupants of the vehicle may be in possession of illegal narcotics.

According to the report, both men spoke to the trooper about their relationship and travels, but the information they provided did not match. The passenger was identified as Collette, and he was asked to exit the vehicle.

The report states that as he got out of the car, the trooper noted a “very large, rounded bulge” in the lap of Collette’s pants, which he suspected to be illegal narcotics. However, the trooper did learn that Collette was suffering from a medical condition, according to the complaint.

The trooper utilized his K-9 partner to check the vehicle, who allegedly alerted him to the passenger side of the vehicle. During a search, the trooper located 25 single Oxycodone pills in a bottle with the name and label ripped off, the report states. He also found a black torch lighter in Collette’s jacket pocket and two small notebooks with suspected drug pricing, the report states.

The complaint also notes that the trooper found a black, zippered bag in the car in which he located two vacuum-sealed, one-pound packages of THC-positive marijuana.

Collette allegedly admitted that the pills were his and that he did not have a prescription for them. He explained that his wife had a valid prescription, but he takes the pills and uses marijuana for his own pain.

The men were released from the scene, according to the report.

If convicted, Collette faces a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment and/or a fine of up to $10,000.

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