Police Seize Thousands of Fentanyl Pills from Passed Out Duo in Rochester Parking Ramp

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- Police seized thousands of fentanyl pills from a vehicle at a downtown Rochester parking ramp last week. 

See Also: Hundreds of Fentanyl Pills Seized from House Near Rochester Elementary School

That’s according to a criminal complaint filed in Olmsted County Court Friday.

Rochester Police responded to the ramp on the report of two people being passed out in a vehicle. 

The call for service came in shortly after 8:30 on the morning of March 28. The behavior of the occupants and items found in the vehicle indicated signs of drug use, the charges say. 

Charges: Over 4,000 Fentanyl Pills Found in Vehicle at Rochester Parking Ramp

Police found the suspect vehicle at the 2nd Street Parking Ramp. Officers encountered a man and woman in the vehicle and also saw numerous pieces of burnt tin foil inside of the vehicle. 

Officers initiated a search of the vehicle and found a gallon Ziploc baggie in the glove compartment that contained what the charges describe as thousands of blue M30 pills that law enforcement knows to typically be laced with fentanyl. 

The woman in the vehicle, who was found in the driver’s seat, was identified as 30-year-old Safia Sied Mohamed of Rochester. The charges say she never gave officers her name and was identified through prior law enforcement contacts with her vehicle. 

29-year-old Abdisalan Ali Hilowle of Rochester was identified as the man in the vehicle. He said Mohamed picked her up and that they had been driving around and smoking the pills. 

He denied any knowledge of the pills and Mohamed gave law enforcement several different stories while police interviewed her, the charges say. 

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The pills tested positive for fentanyl and weighed out to 531.7 grams with packaging. With one pill weighing approximately 0.1 grams, police estimate there were over 4,500 pills in the baggie, a quantity indicative of drug sales, the complaint says. 

Mohamed and Hilowle have each been charged with a count of first-degree drug sales and first-degree drug possession. Mohamed is also facing a misdemeanor charge for giving false identification to police. 

Bail for each defendant was set at $100,000 without conditions. The man and woman are due back in court next month.

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