More than $1.8 million in methamphetamine, black tar heroin, cocaine, marijuana and pills was found Friday, Sept. 27, in a drug sweep involving five search warrants and seven arrests, according to authorities.
The Multi-Agency Narcotics Squad executed searches and made arrests in the 3000 block of Gaines Mill Road, the 200 block of Cronic Drive, the 2000 block of Dixie Drive, the 3000 block of Wallace Road and the 3000 block of Coker Road. All of these are in Gainesville.
“These suspects and locations are all believed to be part of the same criminal organization involved in the distribution of illegal narcotics and weapons in Hall County and surrounding areas,” MANS Lt. Don Scalia wrote in a news release.
Officers found more than 15.5 kilograms of meth, half of a kilogram of black tar heroin, more than a kilogram of cocaine, more than 2 pounds of marijuana and 200 sildenafil pills.
Sildenafil is often sold under the brand name Viagra.
In addition to drugs, 14 handguns, five rifles, a shotgun and $21,500 in cash were seized.
The MANS unit worked with the Department of Homeland Security, the Appalachian Regional Drug Enforcement Office, the Georgia National Guard Counterdrug Task Force, the FBI, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the local agencies of Gainesville Police and the Hall County Sheriff’s Office.
The suspects arrested were: Armando Duarte-Herrera, 28; Jose Manuel Duarte-Duarte, 24; Roberto Henriquez-Hernandez, 58; Cruz Mauricio Guzman, 36; Jose Luis Pacheco-Rojas, 42; Byron Manolo Ramirez-Ramirez, 26; and Everardo Santiago-Moran, 42.
Along with many other charges, Duarte-Herrera and Henriquez-Hernandez were charged with trafficking meth, heroin and cocaine.
Pacheco-Rojas was also charged with trafficking meth and cocaine.
Santiago-Moran was charged with sale of cocaine and meth.
Duarte-Duarte was charged with possession of cocaine, and Ramirez-Ramirez and Mauricio-Guzman were charged with possession of methamphetamine.
The estimated street value of the drugs is $1,837,000.
No further arrests are anticipated in this case at this time, authorities said.
“This operation not only improves the safety of the community, but it also showcases the successes that are possible when law enforcement works together at all levels,” Homeland Security Investigations Acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer said in a statement. “The large amount of narcotics and weapons seized highlights the danger this transnational organization posed to the region.”
See original story by The Times here.