By Lori Ehde
A rural Hills man was found guilty on all drug charges after a two-day jury trial Wednesday and Thursday last week.
Cory Kelderman, 29, was convicted of two counts of conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine, one count of manufacturing methamphetamine and one count of possessing six grams or more of methamphetamine.
Under Minnesota sentence guidelines, the presumptive sentence on these convictions is 86 months in prison, according to Assistant County Attorney Terry Vajgrt.
He said the case represents another victory in the local effort against drugs.
"Law enforcement and our office consider the prosecution of Cory Kelderman to be extremely important," said Vajgrt, who prosecuted the case.
"Information received by law enforcement indicated that Kelderman had been manufacturing methamphetamine for some period of time."
Vajgrt added the case involved cooperation among various agencies.
"The original search of the Kelderman residence would not have been possible without the assistance of South Dakota law enforcement in Sioux Falls," he said.
According to the complaint filed in Rock County District Court, the Rock County Sheriff’s Department searched Kelderman’s home July 19.
Local law enforcement worked with Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Department in South Dakota following the arrest of two individuals who purchased large amounts of cold medicine, pseudoephedrine in Sioux Falls.
When questioned on July 18, these individuals said they intended to deliver the supplies, which included screens and funnels, to Kelderman’s home in Hills.
They said that on July 14 they had delivered similar supplies to Kelderman in exchange for meth.
Based on that information, Rock County officials executed a search warrant of Kelderman’s home the following morning. They found numerous items used to manufacture meth, and in excess of six grams of a substance consistent with the drug.
Kelderman was arrested shortly thereafter, and currently awaits sentencing after last week’s conviction.
Other court activity has transpired since Kelderman’s initial apprehension.
On July 25, Rock County Sheriff’s Department arrested Kevin Dale Smeins, Luverne, after stopping him in Luverne on traffic violation of driving after revocation.
In plain view in the vehicle was a bag containing large amounts of Suphedrine pillboxes. A search of the car yielded roughly 3 grams of meth.
When questioned, Smeins, 42, told law enforcement he was about to deliver the pills to Kelderman’s home in rural Hills that night.
Smeins was sentenced Monday after entering a guilty plea to possession of methamphetamine. Under the terms of the agreement, he was sentenced to 48 months in prison.
In a related case, Kelderman’s uncle, David Leroy Kelderman, 42, was arrested July 26, after Emergency Entry Team officers seized the makings of a meth lab in his Luverne home.
He was sentenced Nov. 25 to 86 months in prison after entering a plea of guilty to the felony offense of manufacturing meth.
His arrest also stemmed from tips from Luverne merchants about suspicious purchases of Suphedrine.
The Sheriff’s Department applauds the residential and commercial tips that led to these arrests and encourages continued cooperation.