Authorities reveal massive Athens drugs and weapons bust

I want to share something else that we are watching for you today as well. This is in Macon. Federal officials about to announce the results of three investigations in the Athens division. So these cases were investigated by the Homeland Security Task Force. U.S. Attorney Will Keyes will be joined by officials from the FBI Homeland Security Investigations and the DEA. Actually, he is speaking right now. Let's dip in and let's listen to what he's saying. Law enforcement and it was played in the courtroom. He laughed. And I can assure you, there is nothing funny about his life sentence now. Thankfully, he's being held accountable for his evil acts. And thanks to this joint effort with law enforcement, he can no longer terrorize our community, the state of Georgia, or the country. You'll see some of Mr. Serra's evidence used, his arsenal right over here to my right. And I'm now going to turn your attention to Mr. Orlando Muckle, a.k.a. Lando. So this is a separate Homeland Security Task Force case, another hearing that took place yesterday in the courtroom, and another sentence that was handed out. This man was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, no parole. He was transporting massive amounts of cocaine for the Gulf Cartel, also known as CDG, the acronym. This is a designated foreign terrorist organization. He was caught in this case with 26 kilograms of cocaine. He was held accountable for that with his 30-year sentence, but that sentence really represents more. It is his career of crime, his multiple convictions for distributing before being caught up in this investigation and receiving that 30-year sentence. You can see Mr. Muckle's evidence over here to my left. Now, right in front of you, these 100 kilograms plus of methamphetamine and firearms, this relates to the attention of Raul Mondragon. I'd like to tell you a little bit about that case. So just yesterday as well, we had a court hearing in Mr. Mondragon's case. This is a man who's alleged to be illegally present in the United States. He was arraigned yesterday, he entered a plea of not guilty, and he faces multiple charges related to the drugs sitting on that table and related to the weapons that he is alleged to have been possessing. He is alleged to possess with intent to distribute over these 100 kilograms of meth and alleged to be distributing these drugs on behalf of the cartel here in Georgia. And so while this case is early in its process moving through our court system, it does demonstrate that this is ongoing. This is an ongoing effort that we're all working together here in the Middle District of Georgia to bring justice to these organizations influencing the landscape here in Georgia. And so what do I want the public to know? I want the public to know first how lucky we are to have these law enforcement officers in Georgia doing this work. Based off the facts that I just told you, I can assure you these are very dangerous cases. This is a dangerous line of work that they are in. But I can tell you it was hundreds of law enforcement officers involved. And I was present during some of this and saw parking lots full of law enforcement officers working together to make sure we can seize this methamphetamine and these guns and fentanyl off the streets. I want to specifically recognize Assistant United States Attorney Mike Morrison and FBI Special Agent Jamie Hipkus. These men have worked tirelessly for years. To work on these cases, to get this off the streets, to protect our communities, their work is saving lives. But of course, this is a team effort. I want to say a big thank you to Athens-Clarke County Police Department. I want to thank DEA. You'll hear from HSI. You'll hear from FBI. But this is a joint effort. You don't take down defendants like this and take things like this off the street unless we're all working together. And so the other thing I want the public public to know is that these cases will continue to be Prioritize. The Middle District of Georgia is not a good place to be engaged in this criminal activity. We are not going to take our foot off the gas. Our office and our partners in law enforcement at all levels, federal, state, and local law enforcement are 100% dedicated to this effort. We will not stop. I'll now turn things over to FBI Special Agent in Atlanta, in charge, Marlon. Thank you all for being here today. I am very proud to stand with our law enforcement partners and display the amazing efforts of our Homeland Security Task Force. Getting these men and their dangerous drugs that they put off, put into our communities and keeping them off the street has been a major milestone in the efforts of our Homeland Security Task Force. This is not only keeping the local city of Athens safe, but it is keeping everyone safe across the state of Georgia. All of the cases we are talking about today, they are really, really driven by our Homeland Security Task Force, which is designed to dismantle foreign terrorist organizations. Thank you. And we will do that by investigating the cartels, the drug trafficking networks, and the gangs that support them. Most of the time, these groups are involved in a host of other crimes to include kidnappings, murder, money laundering, weapons trafficking, some of the evidence you see here today. In a host of other crimes, the defendant, Jose Suerta, is a perfect example of the danger living among us. You heard Mr. Keyes talk about him being in the presence of a baby. Just look at the picture that is displayed here. This individual is pointing a gun just right over the head of a sleeping baby. This is not the type of individual that we would like to have living in our community. Today's cases, they highlight just a part of our Homeland Security Task Force and what it's done since its formation. In the last 13 months, our Homeland Security Task Force, which covers the state of Georgia and Alabama, has arrested 354 people, seized more than 10,000 kilos of cocaine, 143 kilos of fentanyl, and 1,600 kilos of methamphetamine. We have also taken 447 firearms. Off the streets and out of the hands of criminals, just like the gun you just saw Josue holding. In closing, I wanted to be clear that this is a whole-of-community approach, as well as a whole-of-government approach. We are keeping our foot on the gas, and we will not stop until we dismantle these organizations. These cases have a significant impact in the community and the way in which we are going to work to keep it safe. We stand here unified and focused, driving out these dangerous cartels, the men and women who supply them, and we promise to do everything in our power to continue to keep our communities safe because they are our communities as well. Thank you all. Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. My name is John Gaglioso. I'm the acting deputy special agent in charge for the HSI Atlanta field office. The Homeland Security Task Force is grounded in a fundamental principle. Public safety is strongest when law enforcement partners work in close coordination to protect the communities they serve. This is the very reason why the Homeland Security Task Force was created and why it is so important. Federal, state, and local law enforcement each bring distinct expertise, authorities, and resources. And we share one mission, protecting the public and holding accountable those who threaten our communities. Transnational criminal organizations do not respect city, state, county, or national borders. They profit from bringing dangerous drugs and firearms into our neighborhoods, and the damage they cause is felt far beyond a single investigation. It affects families mourning loved ones, first responders confronting dangerous situations, and communities working to keep their children safe. Today's announcement demonstrates what law enforcement partnerships can accomplish when working together. All right, so we've been listening to the results of these three investigations in the Athens division, outlining, you know, we heard everything from drug charges, cartel charges, weapons charges as well, and then outlining the work that was done on these investigations. So we'll continue to keep our eyes on this story.