Johnnie Deandre Farley, 37, Detroit, Mich., is charged in district court in Minot with Class B felony intent to deliver fentanyl, Class B felony intent to deliver Schedule II opiates, Class C felony possession of drug paraphernalia, and Class A misdemeanor resisting arrest on Sunday. He is the latest of several people who have arrived on the Amtrak train from Detroit and have subsequently been charged with drug dealing offenses.

According to a probable cause affidavit filed with the court, the Ward County Narcotics Task Force were tipped off by Amtrak police that a man named Johnnie Sparks had purchased a train ticket from Detroit to Minot and that he had made one such previous trip to Minot on July 2. Amtrak police routinely notify the task force in cases involving apparent trafficking of narcotics, according to the affidavit. Detroit is a major hub for narcotics and Minot, though smaller, is also notable as a hub for narcotics. According to the affidavit, signs the police view as suspicious include one-way travel, last-minute reservations or ticket purchases that are often paid for in cash to avoid further identification, and traveling with a small carry-on bag and not checking luggage.

Several people who got off the train on Sunday at the Minot Amtrak station were carrying minimal bags and were followed by police, according to the affidavit. One of them was Farley, who got off the train carrying a single duffel bag and walked on foot to the Super 8 Motel. Local and non-local narcotics sources often rent rooms at the Super 8, according to the affidavit.

At the hotel, the Ward County Narcotics Task Force made contact with Farley. Farley initially agreed to talk with the officer and showed him ID and said he had bought the train ticket using the surname Sparks, but later began acting nervous and attempted to flee and physically resisted arrest. Authorities searched his bag. The main compartment contained a small foil packet which had “KEBO’ printed on it, as well as instructions for mixing it with marijuana; a jar labeled “Chik-fil-haze” containing suspected marijuana; and a silver scale with suspected drug residue. The compartment contained a black gym sock which contained a plastic baggie with three intact cylinders of a tan powder substance and a broken cylinder of a tan powder substance that were consistent with pressed fentanyl “pucks.” The suspected fentanyl weighed a combined 100.98 grams. The total weight, if unadulterated, would be about 1,000 normal street doses of fentanyl, according to the affidavit. Another baggie contained 11 smaller tied baggies with 1,012 individual 30-milligram oxycodone hydrochloride pills. The pills were in 10 bags of 100 each and one small baggie of 12. Farley’s duffle bag also included a small notebook with 234 gm or 239 gm written on the front page. According to the affidavit, Farley admitted that he had been paid to bring the narcotics into Minot.

Farley made an initial appearance on the charges on Monday before Judge Gary Lee. Lee set bond at $150,000 cash or corporate surety and a preliminary hearing date for Oct. 1. A prosector said Farley has an extensive criminal history in other states.