Meth makes comeback in Minnesota in more dangerous and record ways

A subtle shift was happening among clients at the north Minneapolis community drop-in center.

For years, people seeking substance abuse services at Anything Helps reported using just one drug of choice. Recently, staff noticed more and more users had expanded their appetite, preferring a combination of drugs at once versus "picking a lane." The polysubstance abuse among their regulars soon evolved almost exclusively to one pairing of drugs in the majority of their clients: fentanyl and methamphetamine.

"That's pretty new," according to Brian Warden, the nonprofit's harm reduction director. "That's something we traditionally see in cities like Denver, San Francisco or Seattle. That's not something we've really seen here."

To Warden, the change in the clientele's drug use pattern could stem from a number of reasons, including a correlation with a rise in homelessness in Minneapolis. But undoubtedly, he said, the phenomenon can be explained in part by the recent surge of methamphetamine in Minnesota.

As the deadly fentanyl crisis demanded the state's attention post-pandemic, another was building with methamphetamine. The stimulant, long supreme in the underbelly of Minnesota's drug scene, is flooding the state — with a more dangerous dosage than meth of the past.

"The numbers are just a ridiculous amount of meth ... it just hasn't gotten enough publicity," said Rafael Mattei, acting special agent in charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's division over Minnesota.

Spike in seizures

The meth surge in Minnesota came just as the street fentanyl crisis showed signs of easing.

U.S. opioid overdose deaths plummeted 41% in 2024, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and fatal overdoses of all kinds fell 27%. In Minnesota, preliminary data from the Minnesota Department of Health showed an 8% drop in overall overdose deaths from 2022 to 2023.

But meth "has never gone away," Mattei said.

No longer homemade in makeshift labs, meth is being churned out of Mexican super labs by cartels that cashed in on the lack of supply and cheaper production costs. And its price has plummeted, becoming a more lucrative option for dealers.

Ken Sass, statewide drug and gang coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, recalled a pound of meth costing $3,000 to $5,000 during his tenure as a federal drug agent in the mid-2000s. Now, he estimates, the price has fallen below $1,000.

The drug makes its way to Minnesota most often by snaking up the Interstate 35 corridor to be sold in droves or continue into neighboring states.

Last year, federal officials announced they had busted "one of the largest and most prolific drug organizations" in Minnesota's history following the arrest of a Twin Cities man accused of helping push a historic amount of meth and other substances from Mexico.

Federal prosecutors allege Clinton Ward made ties with two of Mexico's most notorious drug cartels and funneled the substance across the border via shipping containers, private vehicles and semitrailers before breaking the drug down into smaller quantities, then delivering it to Minnesota. The U.S. Attorney's Office charged Ward under the rare "kingpin" statute, along with 14 others in the conspiracy case that led to the seizure of 1,600 pounds of methamphetamine, 4 kilograms of cocaine, 2 kilograms of fentanyl and 30,000 counterfeit fentanyl pills.

Federal officials described the bust as a success for having disrupted a major pipeline of illegal drugs in Minnesota.

Yet methamphetamine is continuing to pour into Minnesota with no sign of slowing down, data from the DEA indicates.

Last year, the amount of methamphetamine seized by federal agents in Minnesota increased 142%, totaling 2,080 pounds, compared with the roughly 860 pounds of meth seized in 2023. The numbers do not include drugs seized by state, local or tribal law enforcement.

Federal drug agents are on track to outpace the amount of meth seized last year. They've seen a 25% increase in the amount of meth seized from January to April 2025, compared with the same time last year.

More readily available meth, Sass said, "leads to more addiction and probably a broadening market as well." And although meth may not be as lethal as fentanyl, the drug today poses its own dangers.

Purer, riskier product

The meth from Mexican super labs holds higher potency, resulting in a more dangerous and addictive concoction than the meth sold in the 1990s and early 2000s. After federal legislation in 2005 cracked down on the commercial sale of products containing precursor chemicals to make meth, such as pseudoephedrine in the decongestant Sudafed, cartels pursued the chemicals overseas and became bulk buyers. The product is then cut with other hazardous materials to bring maximum profit.

Users deep in the throes of meth addiction can stay awake for days, leading to paranoia and hallucinations. A hallmark sign of meth addiction is wounds on a user's skin caused by incessant scratching. People who experience withdrawals may resort to theft, robbery or other crimes to obtain money for another hit. The elevated potency can only worsen symptoms, which carry ripple effects into communities.

"Their health, their mental health, their relationships, medical conditions that arise from addiction and all the personal problems that would come from [addiction] ... they relay that to the relationships with their family," Sass said.

In some cases, law enforcement and treatment providers are seeing fentanyl added to methamphetamine.

Though the risk of dying from a meth overdose is much lower than that of fentanyl, which has a deadly dose that can fit on the tip of a pencil, the drug takes its toll "little by little."

"There is no accident here," Warden said, saying of the adulteration of fentanyl with meth, "I've never seen anything like that before."

Mattei likened the difference between the meth on the streets today compared with meth of the past as that of whiskey versus beer.

"They were making beer first," Mattei said. "Now the meth that's out there is kind of like higher-proof alcohol. So you need less to feel."