A man had a loaded handgun, cash and a digital scale in his vehicle before police found suspected cocaine in a squad car and jail bathroom, according to charges. The discoveries followed a Sept. 15 traffic stop in Minneapolis.
Keshaun Schelven Coatie, 29, of Saint Paul, is charged with felony third-degree drug sale, felony unlawful firearm possession and felony fifth-degree drug possession. He also faces a gross misdemeanor charge of introducing contraband into jail.
An officer stopped Coatie and learned his license was revoked and the vehicle was uninsured. The officer saw unpackaged cannabis in plain view, according to the complaint.
A search of the vehicle turned up a loaded handgun, three cellphones, bags of marijuana, a digital scale, cash and $1,140 in counterfeit bills. Officers found an additional $5,254 on Coatie.
After taking Coatie to the Hennepin County Jail, an officer found a white, rocklike substance in the back of the squad car. Coatie identified it as cocaine, according to the complaint. Deputies later found a bag containing a similar substance on the floor of a bathroom he had just used during booking.
Prosecutors cite the phones, scale and cash as evidence that Coatie intended to sell cocaine. The complaint does not specify a drug weight or laboratory test result.
The complaint says a January 2023 second-degree assault conviction prohibited Coatie from possessing firearms or ammunition.
