Miles Denzel Raymond Lewis, Methamphetamine Distribution, MN 2023

Miles Denzel Raymond Lewis, 26, of Shakopee, Minnesota, is headed to federal prison for more than two decades after being sentenced to 248 months for methamphetamine distribution and illegal possession of firearms. The sentence, handed down today by U.S. District Judge Nancy E. Brasel in St. Paul, marks the end of a high-volume drug operation rooted in the southwest Twin Cities metro.

Lewis pleaded guilty on December 13, 2018, to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking. The charges stem from a May 1, 2018 controlled buy, where Lewis sold meth to a confidential informant from his home. That transaction triggered a search warrant executed days later, exposing a stash house loaded with drugs, cash, and weapons.

During the May 2018 raid on Lewis’s Shakopee residence, federal and local agents seized approximately 2,238 grams of methamphetamine, 338 grams of cocaine, 1,564 grams of marijuana, three firearms, two digital scales, a money counting machine, multiple rounds of ammunition, and $88,221 in cash. On May 18, when Lewis was arrested, authorities found him in possession of an additional $49,831—nearly $140,000 total in physical currency tied to his drug enterprise.

The sheer volume of narcotics and firepower uncovered illustrates the scale of Lewis’s operation. The three firearms recovered—including a handgun, shotgun, and rifle—were all illegally held by a convicted felon. Their presence in a home used for drug distribution underscores the violent potential of his trafficking activities, prosecutors said.

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Ramsey County Violent Crime Enforcement Team, the Shakopee Police Department, and the Saint Paul Police Department. It was prosecuted under Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a federal initiative targeting violent offenders with strategic coordination between law enforcement agencies at every level.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas M. Hollenhorst handled the prosecution. Lewis will serve 248 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release. The case serves as a stark reminder: in the world of high-stakes drug trafficking, a single controlled buy can collapse an entire criminal enterprise.