McLeod County Attorney Michael Junge is reviewing a case out of Hennepin County and determining whether to file charges.
He was asked to review the situation after Eden Prairie Police Officer Travis Serafin, a member of the Southwest Metro Drug Task Force, was accused of falsifying a warrant. According to Eden Prairie News, officers investigating the death of Maggie Lane searched the home of Timothy Martin Holmes earlier this year. Court documents say Lane contacted Holmes to trade anti-anxiety medication for heroin and that she died of an overdose in June after she was sold a mix of heroin and fentanyl.
During a search, drugs were found in Holmes’ home and vehicle. While officers had a warrant to search the home, Serafin allegedly falsified a warrant for the vehicle.
As a result, Holmes was allowed on Oct. 25 to withdraw his guilty plea to first-degree drug sales, which he had been convicted of. He was released from prison six months into a six-year sentence.
Following an internal investigation, it was announced that several cases would have to be dismissed or have convictions vacated and expunged — more than 30 so far. Serafin was a witness in the investigation of 71 defendants.
Junge was asked to review the situation because he was not connected to the internal investigation and doesn’t know what was said or discovered. Serafin did not have the same rights in the internal investigation as defendants do in court.
“They have redacted any information derived from the employee investigation,” Junge said.
He said none of the cases called into question were in McLeod County.
