ST. CLOUD, Minn. — Several events in Minnesota have had ties to the Sinaloa Cartel, including a Minnesota woman who was sentenced to more than 26 years in prison.

“Obviously, she messed up… but she does not deserve to sit that much time,” said Tanja Tilleskjor, mother of Macalla Knot.

Friends and family of Knott, or “Calla,” say she’s not what you think after Knott pleaded guilty to distributing nearly $10 million worth of drugs from Mexico to the upper Midwest.

“I understand there are consequences for her actions, but I have seen people’s lives transformed,” Ashley Schlichting, a longtime friend of Knot, said.

Knott moved south of the border in March 2020 after being laid off. Her family says she tried to come back but didn’t have a passport to do so.

“I think it went dark really fast, went downhill very quickly and was stuck in a situation she couldn’t get out of,” Schlichting said.

Former CIA Agent Jack Rice explained how this can happen.

“Imagine what happens when somebody says, ‘How would you like $100,000?Look how easy this will be. It’s a couple of hours work. It’s nothing.’” Rice said.

Knott’s sentencing happened just days before three were charged in a Cartel-related kidnapping in St. Paul.

“They are much more difficult to actually control than smaller organizations in the Twin Cities and elsewhere. These are powerful multi-national operations with huge resources” Rice said. “The cartel is here to make money. The cartel is here to make profit.”