{"id":36592,"date":"2026-07-07T16:29:39","date_gmt":"2026-07-07T21:29:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/?p=36592"},"modified":"2026-07-05T08:35:02","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T13:35:02","slug":"ponsford-man-charged-in-meth-sale-case-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/ponsford-man-charged-in-meth-sale-case-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Ponsford Man Charged in Meth Sale Case"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ponsford Man Charged in Meth Sale Case<\/h2>\n
PONSFORD, Minn.<\/strong> (trfnews.i234.me<\/a>) \u2014 A Ponsford man faces two felony drug charges in Becker County.<\/p>\n

William Lawrence Butcher Sr., 64, is charged with third-degree drug sale and fifth-degree drug possession.<\/p>\n

The charges were filed in Becker County District Court under case number 03-CR-26-963.<\/p>\n

The complaint alleges Butcher possessed methamphetamine with intent to sell. It also alleges he possessed methamphetamine.<\/p>\n

Search Warrant Executed<\/h2>\n

Drug task force agents searched a residence on Amik Avenue on February 9, 2026.<\/p>\n

According to the complaint, agents found a red coin purse inside a couch.<\/p>\n

The purse allegedly held a white crystal substance and several small plastic bags.<\/p>\n

Agents also found another container with a white crystal substance near the kitchen sink.<\/p>\n

\"WilliamWilliam Lawrence Butcher Sr.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Cash and Packaging Seized<\/h2>\n

Investigators searched a locked closet in the middle bedroom.<\/p>\n

The complaint says they found unused blue, green, and red micro baggies.<\/p>\n

They also reported finding a wallet containing $1,700 in cash.<\/p>\n

Drug paraphernalia was allegedly found in several areas of the residence.<\/p>\n

Investigators said the methamphetamine, cash, and packaging suggested possible drug sales.<\/p>\n

Butcher Denied Owning Drugs<\/h2>\n

Butcher told investigators he had lived at the residence for about seven months.<\/p>\n

He said the middle bedroom was his. He also said he controlled the locked closet.<\/p>\n

Butcher said the packaging and cash came from beadwork.<\/p>\n

He denied owning the drugs. He also said he did not know who owned them.<\/p>\n

A witness told investigators several people had visited the previous night.<\/p>\n

The witness also alleged Butcher sold small amounts of drugs for $20.<\/p>\n

Testing Found Methamphetamine<\/h2>\n

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension tested the substance from the red purse.<\/p>\n

The complaint says testing showed about six grams of methamphetamine.<\/p>\n

Preliminary DNA testing also linked Butcher to the purse, according to the complaint.<\/p>\n

Confirmatory DNA testing was still pending when the complaint was filed.<\/p>\n

Possible Penalties<\/h2>\n

Third-degree drug sale carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.<\/p>\n

The charge also carries a possible fine of up to $250,000.<\/p>\n

Fifth-degree possession carries up to five years in prison.<\/p>\n

That charge also carries a possible fine of up to $10,000.<\/p>\n

Readers can review the charges through the Minnesota Revisor of Statutes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The fifth-degree possession law is available under Minnesota Statute 152.025<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Case updates may appear through the Minnesota Court Records Online system<\/a>.<\/p>\n

All charges are allegations. Butcher is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.<\/p>\n

I’m Chris Harper, reporting for TRF News<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 TRF News. All rights reserved.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Ponsford man faces two felony drug charges after agents reported finding methamphetamine, cash, baggies, and drug items in a home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":36593,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_wpscp_schedule_draft_date":"","_wpscp_schedule_republish_date":"","_wpscppro_advance_schedule":false,"_wpscppro_advance_schedule_date":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":false,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"","_twitter_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type":"","_pinterest_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"","_medium_share_type":"","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[12],"tags":[871,770,772,151,1026,9927,6416],"class_list":["post-36592","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crime","tag-case","tag-charged","tag-crime","tag-man","tag-meth","tag-ponsford","tag-sale","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36592"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36592\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36594,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36592\/revisions\/36594"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36593"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}