A local man was found guilty Tuesday of drug trafficking charges by a Mower County jury.

Jurors took 3 1/2 hours to deliberate the case before reaching their guilty verdicts.

Dean Thordor, of Austin, was convicted of a second-degree controlled substance crime for intent to sell three grams of methamphetamine, as well as a third-degree simple possession charge.

He was also convicted of third-degree possession of cocaine with the intent to sell and a third-degree charge of possession of methamphetamine in a park zone.

Thordor was also convicted of fifth-degree possession of cocaine.

Thordor admitted under oath that he was a marijuana dealer, but denied dealing in methamphetamine drugs and cocaine.

Mower County Attorney Patrick A. Oman praised the work of local law enforcement officers in building the case.

"They handled this case very professionally and did a great job," Oman said of the work of Mower County Sheriff's Department and Austin Police Department detectives and officers who worked the case.

Thordor remains in the Mower County Jail, awaiting sentencing by District Court Judge Fred W. Wellmann.

The prosecutor called five witnesses to testify before Wellmann and the jurors in the Monday and Tuesday trial.

Under oath in the open courtroom, Thordor said he was a "large" marijuana dealer in Austin, but expressed no knowledge of methamphetamine and cocaine transactions.

Thordor was observed by a Mower County Sheriff's Department deputy on routine patrol last August in a Mapleview park, where he was arrested.

Oman characterized the multiple convictions of Thordor as "significant." He said, "Mr. Thordor has been a thorn in the side of local law enforcement for some time and he has been identified as a major drug dealer."

Oman also said the prosecution's case was aided by Wellmann's decision to allow testimony of a June 2001 incident, involving Thordor, in which he was arrested in possession of 12 pounds of marijuana.

Lee Bonorden can be contacted at 434-2232 or by e-mail at :mailto:lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com