The Oakdale man who died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in January allegedly had 17 firearms and more than 11,700 rounds of ammunition when officers entered his home to carry out a search warrant, according to a federal forfeiture complaint.
Police said Mark Kuzel, 53, fired at officers, wounding one in the arm, before apparently committing suicide as officers searched his home for a marijuana grow operation. According to a federal forfeiture complaint filed in May, the United States District Court of Minnesota wants to seize Kuzel's property on the 2700 block of Granite Avenue, firearms and ammunition because they were used in narcotics facilitation.
"The firearms were easily accessible and loaded magazines were located near the firearms and ready to be loaded into each gun," according to the document.
Acting on a tip from an anonymous source that Kuzel had been growing marijuana for more than 20 years, Oakdale police officers and a special agent from the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension conducted surveillance at his home for about a month.
Officers found that Kuzel has been using nearly three times as much electricity as his neighbors, and his trash contained germination pods that later tested positive for marijuana.
Before carrying out the search warrant, officers knew Kuzel had a permit to carry and had purchased firearms.
When they entered the home, Kuzel shot and wounded an officer. He went back inside the house and officers heard another gunshot. They found him in an upstairs bathroom.
Officers later found 29 marijuana plants in an excavated crawl space that was "well hidden and sophisticated in its construction." The harvested marijuana weighed nearly 1,190 grams.
"Kuzel stated he did not want to go to jail," the news release said.
Karen Zamora • 612-673-4647
Twitter: @KarenAnelZamora
