In a significant operation, the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) Atlanta Division announced the confiscation of an unprecedented quantity of methamphetamine trafficked from Mexico. This operation marks the largest meth seizure for the division, as well as ranking as the third-largest nationally for the year, according to Robert Murphy, the division's special agent in charge. Highlighting the unique nature of this seizure, Murphy pointed out, "Most of this kind of seizures that we have today occur on the border."
The drugs, exceeding one ton and valued over $3 million wholesale, were intercepted at the Atlanta State Farmers Market in Clayton County. Concealed within a shipment of celery, the narcotics prompted collaboration between DEA agents, local law enforcement, and the Georgia Department of Agriculture, leading to the destruction of the contaminated celery. Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper underscored the strategic exploitation of the state's agricultural sector by drug cartels, vowing continued efforts to safeguard Georgia's farming industry from such criminal activities.
The operation also led to the arrest of a suspect, a Mexican citizen named Jesus Martinez, signalling the entrenched presence of Mexican cartels in Georgia. With the aim of dismantling the responsible cartel, Murphy described the seizure as indicative of the cartel's confidence and operational scale within the region.
Source: atlantanewsfirst.com