Austin man faces firearm, drug charges

Published 7:27 am Tuesday, September 1, 2009

An Austin man faces felony charges for allegedly possessing about 50 grams of marijuana and owning an illegal gun.

Gilbert Pineda, 44, of 701 Ninth St. S.E., appeared in Mower County court Monday on two felony firearm charges and a felony fifth-degree drug possession charge.

According to a court complaint, Pineda’s home was searched Friday by members of the Austin Police Department and the Southeast Minnesota Narcotics and Gang Task Force, which is composed of various local sheriff’s offices and police departments.

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Pineda was home, along with a 33-year old woman and three children, ages 7, 9 and 16, during the search.

When told his house was being searched for drugs, Pineda told authorities that “everything” would be in a cigar box under his bed.

Authorities found 24 grams of marijuana in the box, but also found another 28 grams in a cabinet.

A shotgun with a scratched off serial number was also recovered.

Authorities looked through Pineda’s text-message history on his phone and found a number of messages related to drug trafficking.

Pineda was previously convicted of a felony drug charge in 1990 in Steele County, the complaint notes.