Convicted drug dealer facing new sale charges

A convicted drug dealer is facing new charges after he crashed into a light pole in St. Peter last year.

Joshua David Vezina, 35, of Bloomington, was charged in Nicollet County Court Tuesday with felony 1st and 2nd-degree drug sales.  He’s also charged with felony drug possession and misdemeanor DWI.

According to a criminal complaint, the state patrol responded in Nov 2021 to an early morning crash in which a light pole had been hit and was lying across the vehicle.  The complaint says the male driver- identified as Vezina – was still inside the car.

A nearby homeowner who had come outside when he heard the crash told police that Vezina had tried to hand him a black bag of drugs and told him to hide it.  The witness refused to take the bag and watched Vezina try to hide it, according to the complaint.

The state patrol says they saw Vezina trying to place something on the floor of the passenger side and later found a black bag in that area.   Troopers say Vezina was mumbling and had difficulty speaking, and he had glassy, “overly alert” eyes.

A 50-gram package full of meth, a loaded syringe, a scale, and other drug paraphernalia were found in the car, according to the complaint.

Vezina said he hadn’t been using chemicals, and he denied that the syringe or the drugs were his.

A Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension analysis showed that Vezina’s blood tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine.

The complaint says Vezina was convicted of 2nd-degree drug sales in Ramsey County in October 2015.  Court documents show he also has a 2014 conviction for DWI and a 2017 drug possession conviction.

A warrant has been issued for his arrest.

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