All of the conduct described herein occurred within the County of St. Louis, State of Minnesota, unless otherwise noted. On November 2, 2025, at approximately 10:13 PM Trooper Benda of the Minnesota State Patrol observed a vehicle driving 55 mph in a 45-mph zone on US Highway 53 in Virginia, St. Louis County, Minnesota. As he followed the vehicle, Trp. Benda observed that the vehicle increased it's speed to 60 mph after the speed limit increased to 50 mph. Trp. Benda activated his emergency lights and initiated a traffic stop.
Trp. Benda identified the driver as DOMINICK MICHAEL FORSCHEN [DOB REDACTED] by his Colorado driver's license, and front passenger as Jeremiah Forschen, FORSCHEN's brother. FORSCHEN was not able to provide any proof of insurance for the vehicle. Upon running the license plate (CO BTJ 197), Trp. Benda learned that the vehicle was reported as stolen by the Colorado Springs (CO) Police Department on October 13, 2025. FORSCHEN was taken into custody and placed into the back of Trp. Benda's squad car.
During a Mirandized statement, FORSCHEN stated that he moved back to Minnesota from Colorado about 2 1/2 weeks earlier, and was staying with his brother in Biwabik. FORSCHEN stated that he purchased the vehicle from an "older dude" named Ron Christensen in Colorado about 1 1/2 weeks before coming back to Minnesota. However, FORSCHEN also estimated that he purchased the car from Christensen between October 17 - 25. Under first timeline, FORSCHEN would have purchased the vehicle on or about October 5, or about a week before it was reported as stolen.
Under the second timeline, he would have purchased the vehicle 4-12 days after it was reported as stolen. FORSCHEN stated that Christensen was waiting to get a salvage title for the vehicle, and would then send that to FORSCHEN; however, FORSCHEN did not have any contact information for Christensen and did not have a bill of sale. FORSCHEN stated that everything in the vehicle belonged to him. During a separate Mirandized statement, Jeremiah Forschen said that FORSCHEN told him that FORSCHEN bought the vehicle from "a buddy." When asked about that, Jeremiah said that FORSCHEN never said the "buddy's" name, just that "it was a guy he knew." Jeremiah was released shortly thereafter.
During an inventory search of the vehicle, Trp. Benda located 72g of psilocybin mushrooms (Schedule I hallucinogen), and during a search of FORSCHEN's person he located a plastic baggie containing about 1g of cannabis flower. Once at the jail, during a follow-up Mirandized statement, FORSCHEN stated that he believed that mushrooms became legal in Minnesota at the same time the cannabis was legalized. When asked again about the person from whom he purchased the vehicle, FORSCHEN stated his name was "something like 'Ron Sheerfield'". PLEASE TAKE NOTICE: Pursuant to Minn.
