A 20-year-old Chaska man who peddled heroin out of a backpack in a west suburban parking lot has been sentenced to 50 months in prison after pleading guilty to dealing the drug, Carver County officials announced Tuesday.

County Attorney Mark Metz said that Chaska police received a tip that Michael John Cain had been purchasing Mexican "black tar" heroin from a source in Minneapolis and selling it in Chaska. During an investigation, undercover police officers observed Cain selling drugs in the parking lot of the Petco store on Pioneer Trail in Chaska, Metz said.

Police searched Cain's residence and found 14 grams of heroin and nearly $10,000 in his black backpack, Metz said.

Cain was sentenced by District Judge Michael Baxter on May 17 after pleading guilty to a felony charge of controlled-substance crime in the second degree.

Metz said prosecution of heroin cases is a top priority for his office.

"Despite his young age of 20, Mr. Cain was a significant heroin dealer in Carver County," he said in a news release. "This prison sentence should serve as a deterrent that drug dealing will not be tolerated in our community, and there will be significant consequences for those who deal drugs."

Chaska Police Chief Scott Knight said that Chaska, like other suburbs, is not immune to the ravages of heroin, and that younger users may not realize that they can become immediately addicted, risk fatal accidental overdose and face physical and psychological problems.

Tom Meersman • 612-673-7388