Suspected drug dealer charged
Police executed a search warrant at 3 p.m. Thursday, July 6, at a home on the 700 block of Depot Street in Manawa.
Helena L. Karschney, 26, was arrested and subsequently charged with three felony counts of delivery of methamphetamine, one count of possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia.
On May 30, Manawa police assisted in the controlled purchase of two bindles of meth for $40 from Karschney, according to the criminal complaint.
Each bindle was wrapped in aluminum foil and weighed 0.1 grams.
Similar drug deals were reportedly made on June 6 and July 3.
While executing the July 6 search warrant, officers reported finding 0.17 grams of meth, as well as fluoxetine and acetaminophen pills, and drug paraphernalia in a room Karschney shares with Matthew L. Thunder, 30.
Thunder was arrested on an active warrant for failure to appear in court for a hearing on June 28.
He is currently being held in custody on a $500 cash bond, but has not been charged for the meth found in his room as of July 11.
Karschney remains in custody on a $5,000 cash bond.
Police say Karschney told investigators she has sold meth about 10-11 times in the past two months.
Karschney reportedly buys a “ball” – 3-4 grams of meth – at a time and sells “points” – 0.1 gram – for about $20 to $30 each.
She also said she uses meth herself on a daily basis, the complaint says.
Manawa police worked with state and county investigators in a month-long investigation, according to Manawa Police Chief James Gorman.
“I want to send a message out to these drug dealers that we won’t tolerate their illegal possession of drugs or dealing of drugs in the city of Manawa,” Gorman said.
Noting Manawa has too few officers to assign any to full-time drug enforcement, Gorman said he appreciated the assistance he received from the Waupaca County Sheriff’s Office in investigating this case.