ST. PAUL — A man who worked as research assistant at the University of Minnesota is charged with manufacturing methamphetamine.

Two officers patrolling a St. Paul public storage building last week on a theft report found 30-year-old Matthew Lee Krause in a methamphetamine lab in a unit.

According to the university’s website, Krause works as an undergraduate research assistant II, in the biology department. The site describes him as a “master cloner,” working on developing an in vitro regeneration system for pennycress, a potential source for biodiesel fuel

Krause was charged Tuesday in Ramsey County.

University spokesman Chuck Tombarge said Krause was last enrolled in the spring of 2013 and never earned a degree.

Tombarge says it’s unclear if Krause is still employed there.