2023 Cable News Network. That led investigators to begin tracking Magana. Drug Enforcement Administration agents seized more than 2,200 pounds of methamphetamine earlier this month . Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Announces Major Drug Bust Involving Fentanyl and Fentanyl Laced Drugs, Union City Boys Knock Off 5th Ranked Gibson County; Girls Fall to Lady Pioneers, Kolitsch named acting provost and senior vice chancellor, Stewart County Dispatch Breaks Record During Storm, Suspected Tornado Touchdown Damages Homes, Band Students Represent Districts Best At All West, Weakley County Students Celebrate Reading In Unique Ways, Speakers remember Martin Luther King, Jr. during annual celebration. Have a question about Government Services? Counterfeit Pills Both agencies led the arrest round up in Benton and Henry Counties on Tuesday as a part of Operation Icebreaker, a more than year-long drug investigation targeting methamphetamine and other. Lock Jenkins was also charged with attempted possession with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine following a conviction for a serious drug felony. Task Force Director Johnie Carter said he was ecstatic with the coordinated operation. The drugs in that bust were seized at the Otay Mesa port of entry to San Diego. Discovery Company. Posted: Aug 11, 2021 / 04:35 PM CDT. Our hands are tied with a near century old law that could not have foreseen the problem of illegal cell phones inside prisons in 2021.. Authorities allege they've interrupted a methamphetamine supply line that stretched from Mexico to Georgia and up into East Tennessee and elsewhere. The penalties for these felonies range in length: Class B Felony: 8 to 30 years. Hidden on the property in various vehicles, including a bus, they found a total of 864 kilograms of meth, according to records. Investigators used wiretaps along with other surveillance, confidential sources, traffic stops, search warrants, and gang intelligence to investigate this drug trafficking organization. According to Washington County Sheriff Ed Graybeal, an ongoing collaboration between area law enforcement officials has resulted in the conviction in a methamphetamine conspiracy of nearly 57 defendants with the possible subsequent federal sentence of more than 300 . Further investigation revealed that Terry Smith a/k/a "Ali," a/k/a "Cockeye", Chief of Security for the Vice Lords street gang, arranged large quantities of methamphetamine, marijuana, cocaine, heroin and fentanyl to be shipped into the Western District of Tennessee from Texas and Arizona. December 22, 2020 tennessee narcotic drug bust in which has been filed a felony counts of!. A 28-year-old woman was arrested Saturday following a drug bust during which police found more than 183 grams of suspected heroin/fentanyl, the Anne Arundel County Police Department said. Middle District of Tennessee
Special Agents assigned to the Drug Investigation Division cooperate with local, state, and especially federal law enforcement agencies, such as the Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Tennessees United States Attorneys offices. Drug possession charges can be difficult to get dismissed because, unlike most crimes, the state does not have to prove your mental state or intent. Its important to know also that possession can mean anything from having the drugs in your pocket to having them in your car or even near you. She lived 30-40 minutes from the house, according to the government. Dec 31, 2014 Updated Oct 19, 2022. The primary objective and mission of the GTFME remains to provide public safety for the citizens of Tennesseethrough: Go to Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI). But police found a pelican case they'd left behind that had about 500 grams of suspected methamphetamine, according to records. DEA images of the duffel bags the drugs were found in. CA houses for rent. Class C Felony: 3 to 15 years. The massive operation was led by 29-year-old Humberto Morales of Tennessee who has been incarcerated at the Tennessee State Prison since 2014. All Rights Reserved. of fentanyl, and 3.5 grams of heroin. June 24, 2020 Authorities charged 47 people and seized more than $1.7 million worth of methamphetamine following a nine-month drug investigation across the state, officials said Wednesday.. The most serious of which are pills containing Fentanyl. A locked padlock of methamphetamine (ice), 500 fentanyl pills, and an additional 1.25 lbs. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. But after a local and TBI spokesperson Leslie Earhart said the 2022 Enhanced Criminal Enforcement Operation centered around pursuing illicit drugs in seven East Tennessee counties. Ongoing Drug Investigation in East Tennessee Results in 39 Indictments KNOXVILLE - Thirty-nine people have been indicted following a nearly two-year undercover investigation into a violent drug trafficking organization that has ties to at least three states. The organization allegedly has ties to MS-13, Sur-13 and a host of other street gangs that distributed thousands of illegal narcotics, according to the DOJ. ORDER REPRINT . According to a Tennessee Bureau of Investigation news release, 15 people are in custody as of Thursday afternoon. In March 2019, a DEA investigation was initiated in the Jackson, Tennessee area. TADEC is passionately committed to protecting the drug-endangered children of Tennessee by generating a renewed collaboration of resources from multidiscipline organizations and jurisdictions in the responsibility of protecting these children. All four charges for possession with intent are classified as felonies. Last month, Attorney General William Barr and Shea announced that in six months of the operation, agents seized more than 28,000 pounds of meth, $43.3 million in drug proceeds and 284 firearms. Federal officials say late Monday and early Tuesday they served a search warrant on a "stash house" in Conyers, Ga., that Magana had frequently visited. Harper alerted the agents "to the presence of a narcotic containing odor coming from the vehicle," task force officials said in a news release. These counterfeits are compiled of various concoctions and are not what they appear to be. Officers found the people who'd been in the vehicle, and they said they'd just been to northern Georgia to buy methamphetamine through a woman named "Maria," according to records. Officers also recovered kilo presses; $45,000 in cash; and a .380 caliber pistol. Facing those charges are Columbia residents Charles White Chaz Lowe-Kelley, 30, and Hohenwald residents Michael Mac Black Sowell, 37, Frank Chucky Sparkman, 40, Antonio Premo Sowell, 37, Tanasha Nesha" Vaughn,22, in addition to Nashville residents Darron Snype Lucas Weakley, 35, and Antonio Lil Memphis Laster, 31. He went into the building, and when he came back out he was carrying a Doritos bag, according to records. The arrests and drug seizure was made possible after agents developed information about a shipment of drugs being sent to Murfreesboro from California. Fax Line: 615-401-6626. The Gulf Coast HIDTA encompasses designated counties/parishes across the six states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Law enforcement across Tennessee has seen "fake pills" manufactured to look like prescription medications (i.e., Percocet, Hydrocodone, Xanax) through the use of pill presses. U.S. Attorney's Office, Middle District of Tennessee, Kilos of Heroin, Fentanyl & Cocaine Distributed in the Nashville Area, Lengthy Prison Sentences For Three Nashville Drug Dealers, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Last Of Gangster Disciples Sentenced In Racketeering & Drug Trafficking Conspiracy, Nashville Trio Facing Federal Human Trafficking & Drug Distribution Charges, Mid-State Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Drug Distribution And Firearms Charges. We believe there is only one viable solution in fighting the war on contraband cell phones in our facilities and that is through the deployment of shielded-micro jamming technology.. In Tennessee, its illegal to possess a controlled substance without having a medical prescription for the substance. They were discovered hidden in a truck delivering medical supplies from Mexico. So these are high-level individuals.. Task force director Johnie Carter said the numbers were "absolutely terrifying.". During the same time frame, the number of DEA arrests related to meth rose nearly 20%. Assistant U.S. Attorney Hillary Lawler Parham is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government. The investigation began in March 2020 and focused on drug trafficking in the Knoxville area in eastern Tennessee. Individuals seeking prescription drugs like Hydrocodone have found that heroin is cheaper and more accessible on the street. Mardi Growl to close several roads in downtown Knoxville on Saturday, What you need to know about paying to park in the Great Smoky Mountains, Severe storms move through East Tennessee, THP dashcam video shows chase, shootout on Highway 27, Corryton man shot after chase ends in shoot-out with THP troopers. An investigation carried out by federal and local law enforcement has resulted in the indictment of 22 individuals for illegally distributing substantial amounts of controlled substances in Maury and Lewis counties. We are taking the fight to the gangs in order to dismantle their drug trafficking organizations and remove them from our streets. Less than a quarter of a milligram of fentanyl could kill the average person, and the amount seized here is enough for every person in Shelby County to overdose more than nine times over. Magana is a central figure in the alleged operation, records indicate. Published According to court documents, the DEA and local law enforcement partners launched an investigation into the drug-trafficking organization in June 2019. Federal Agencies and Law Enforcement Partners. The motto of the Tennessee Dangerous Drugs Task Force continues to be Protect, Enforce, and Educate., The Tennessee Alliance for Drug-Endangered Children(TADEC) is comprised offederal, local, and state agencies who share a goal to prevent drug-related harm to children and rescue, shelter, and support Tennessees children who suffer physical and psychological harm caused by the manufacture, distribution, sale, and abuse ofprescription drugs and alcohol.. The federal indictment also charges 14 individuals with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana, between March 2018 and September 2019. Columbia, TN 38401 The drugs were found packed inside 25 duffel bags and ready for distribution, according to authorities. The case will be presented to a federal grand jury at a later date to consider an indictment against the defendants. The technology would essentially jam the signals of cellphones smuggled into prisons. Affidavits cite numerous undercover and controlled drug purchases, as well as seizures of heroin, fentanyl, and large amounts of cash. If you are similarly charged with drug possession or any other drug crime in Tennessee, you should take these charges seriously. Christopher Mantooth, 38, Sarah . D. Michael Dunavant, U.S. Attorney announced the unsealing of the federal criminal complaint today. Each defendants role in the drug trafficking conspiracy is outlined in the criminal complaint: Terry Smith, a/k/a "Ali," a/k/a "Cockeye", 33 of Lauderdale County (TDOC Custody), Rodney Ayers, a/k/a "P-Rod," 47 of Shelby County, Horace McNeary, a/k/a "HB," 35 of Henry County, Brianna Norsworthy, 23 of Calloway County, Kentucky, Dustin Chambers, a/k/a "SNOW," 35 of Madison County, Anthony Hines, a/k/a "BYRD," 41 of Shelby County, Teddy Reed, a/k/a "PT," 40 of Shelby County, Danielle Cunningham, 35 of Shelby County, Aerielle Coleman, 31 of Shelby County, and, James Dumas, a/k/a "DOO DOO," 45 of Shelby County, Terry Smith, a/k/a "ALI," a/k/a "COCKEYE", Tracy Coleman, 49 of Shelby County, and, Terry Smith, a/k/a "ALI," a/k/a "COCKEYE.