$7M in Drugs, Cash Seized in Gwinnett

U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agents arrested three men at a drug stash house at 4041 Megan Road in unincorporated Duluth on Tuesday. The raid netted 39 kilograms (86 pounds) of heroin with a street value of $5 million and two kilos (4.4 pounds) of methamphetamine or “crystal ice” with a street value of $132,000.

Fulton County District Attorney Paul L. Howard Jr. and Harry S. Sommers, DEA agent in charge of the Atlanta Field Division, announced the arrest and drug seizure in a press release Thursday (Aug. 2).

This residence was being used by Mexican drug cartel operatives to hide money and drugs for a drug trafficking organization operating out of Fulton County, according to their announcement.

They also reported that an assault rifle, handgun and a vehicle were also confiscated along with $2 million dollars in related cash. DEA Atlanta has been investigating this drug cartel for more than a year. This week’s seizure is linked to an August 2011 seizure of 36 kilos of heroin and $4 million dollars in cash in Cobb County.

Arrested at the stash house were Bardomiano Renteria-Salazar, 36, Carlos Soto-Pineda, 32, and Raphael Lee-Ochoa, 20. Salazar and Ochoa were charged with trafficking in methamphetamine and possession of a weapon during a crime. All three were being held at the Gwinnett County Detention Center.

The investigation is continuing pending their indictment by a Fulton County Grand Jury.