{"id":72847,"date":"2026-11-11T13:45:00","date_gmt":"2026-11-11T19:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/?p=72847"},"modified":"2026-11-10T10:47:14","modified_gmt":"2026-11-10T16:47:14","slug":"mcintosh-traffic-stop-leads-to-felony-mushroom-charge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/mcintosh-traffic-stop-leads-to-felony-mushroom-charge\/","title":{"rendered":"McIntosh Traffic Stop Leads to Felony Mushroom Charge"},"content":{"rendered":"

MCINTOSH, MN \u2013 (trfnews.i234.me)<\/a><\/strong> \u2013 A Bemidji woman faces a felony drug charge after Minnesota State Patrol investigators allegedly discovered psychedelic mushrooms during a traffic stop in Polk County.<\/p>\n

Kaylia Alese Merrill, 18, of Bemidji, is charged with fifth-degree controlled substance possession involving psilocybin mushrooms.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The charge stems from an October 31, 2026, traffic stop along Highway 2 in McIntosh.<\/p>\n

According to a criminal complaint, Merrill told investigators the mushrooms belonged to her uncle.<\/p>\n

Expired Registration Leads to Traffic Stop<\/h2>\n

A Minnesota State Patrol trooper stopped an Audi on Highway 2 after noticing its registration had expired.<\/p>\n

The driver was identified as Rhiiaunna Symone Lee Gotchie, 20.<\/p>\n

According to the complaint, Gotchie did not have a valid driver’s license.<\/p>\n

Several people were inside the vehicle, including Merrill, who was seated behind the driver.<\/p>\n

Investigators reported smelling marijuana coming from inside the Audi.<\/p>\n

Gotchie acknowledged that marijuana was inside the vehicle and agreed to a search.<\/p>\n

Trooper Discovers Mushrooms Inside Purse<\/h2>\n

During the search, the trooper allegedly discovered a sandwich bag containing suspected psilocybin mushrooms.<\/p>\n

The bag was located inside a purse in the vehicle’s back seat.<\/p>\n

Investigators questioned Merrill and another passenger about the mushrooms.<\/p>\n

According to court documents, the other passenger initially claimed the mushrooms belonged to him.<\/p>\n

However, Merrill reportedly provided additional information about how the mushrooms ended up inside the vehicle.<\/p>\n

\"Kaylia<\/a>
Kaylia Alese Merrill<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Woman Claims Mushrooms Belonged to Uncle<\/h2>\n

According to the complaint, Merrill told investigators the mushrooms were intended for her uncle.<\/p>\n

She reportedly said they had purchased the mushrooms for him but had not delivered them.<\/p>\n

Merrill also claimed she accidentally grabbed the wrong bag.<\/p>\n

She allegedly explained that her uncle would have them pick up mushrooms and transport them to him.<\/p>\n

According to investigators, Merrill acknowledged collecting the mushrooms from a friend.<\/p>\n

She also reportedly said the mushrooms fit inside her bag.<\/p>\n

The complaint does not identify the uncle or provide additional details about his alleged involvement.<\/p>\n

Felony Drug Possession Charge Filed<\/h2>\n

Prosecutors allege Merrill unlawfully possessed a mixture containing psilocybin, a Schedule I controlled substance under Minnesota law.<\/p>\n

The charge alleges possession involving more than 0.25 grams or more than one dosage unit of psilocybin.<\/p>\n

The supplied complaint does not provide an exact laboratory-confirmed weight.<\/p>\n

Merrill faces one count of fifth-degree controlled substance possession under Minnesota Statute 152.025.<\/p>\n

If convicted, she could face a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both.<\/p>\n

The legal provisions are available through the Minnesota Revisor of Statutes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Case Filed in Polk County District Court<\/h2>\n

The case was filed in Minnesota’s Ninth Judicial District under court number 60-CR-26-1624.<\/p>\n

The criminal complaint includes an order of detention.<\/p>\n

The supplied documents do not identify a scheduled court hearing or establish the current outcome of the case.<\/p>\n

Additional case information may be available through Minnesota Court Records Online<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Merrill is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I’m Adrian Cole reporting for TRF News<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kaylia Alese Merrill of Bemidji faces a felony drug charge after troopers allegedly found psilocybin mushrooms during a traffic stop in McIntosh.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":72849,"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":"","_bluesky_share_type":"","_mastodon_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":"","timeOption":"","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":""},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[12],"tags":[11029,30935,5244,946],"trf_mt_town":[29430,29450],"trf_mt_county":[29512,29511],"trf_mt_topic":[29494,29493],"trf_mt_series":[],"class_list":["post-72847","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crime","tag-drug-charges","tag-kaylia-alese-merrill","tag-mcintosh","tag-polk-county"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72847","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=72847"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72847\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":72850,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72847\/revisions\/72850"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72847"},{"taxonomy":"trf_mt_town","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/trf_mt_town?post=72847"},{"taxonomy":"trf_mt_county","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/trf_mt_county?post=72847"},{"taxonomy":"trf_mt_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/trf_mt_topic?post=72847"},{"taxonomy":"trf_mt_series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/trf_mt_series?post=72847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}