Jesus Fabian Mendez

On March 2, 2026, at approximately 9:24 P.M. Deputy Beaver of the Mower County Sheriff’s Office was dispatched to the Mower County Jail located at 201 2nd Avenue NE in the City of Austin, County of Mower, for a report of methamphetamine located at the jail. Deputy Beaver arrived and contacted Detention Sgt. Fletcher. Sgt. Fletcher turned over to Beaver a small baggie containing crystalline substance (later field tested positive for methamphetamine and weighed 2 grams). Sgt. Fletcher advised that jail staff located the baggie in a cabinet where the inmates’ cups and sporks are stored.

This is in the area near the fingerprint machine and where inmates are walked from the sally port to the shower room. Jail Administrator Hartquist reviewed security footage and identified JESUS FABIAN MENDEZ, DOB/082095, the defendant herein, as the subject who deposited the baggie of methamphetamine into the bin. Security footage shows that on February 18, 2026, the defendant was booked into the jail by Austin Police Department. After he was searched, a Detention Deputy can be seen walking the defendant to the shower area.

The footage shows that at 12:07 A.M., the defendant is seen placing an item from his right front pocket into the bin, where the methamphetamine was later located, with his right hand and out of the sight of the detention deputy. On March 9, 2026, Det. Sorenson contacted the defendant at Mower County Correctional Services after he had finished with a meeting with his agent. Sorenson advised the defendant that he was not under arrest. Det. Sorenson advised the defendant that security footage from his jail booking on February 18th, showed him depositing a bag of methamphetamine into a bin inside the jail.

The defendant stated, "I wouldn’t recall any of it, I wouldn’t remember.” The defendant said he was stressed out because he had a lot on his mind at the time. The defendant denied being under the influence of drugs at the time of his arrest and stated that he did not remember depositing the drugs into the bin after he was brought to the jail.