Federal authorities have seized over a ton of cartel-linked crystal methamphetamine hidden between boxes of celery in a cargo truck at the Atlanta State Farmers Market in Forest Park, Georgia.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Atlanta division announced on Tuesday that special agents confiscated the “record-breaking” amount last week during an enforcement operation.
Special agents arrested Jesus Martinez, the driver of the truck hiding the 2,585 pounds of meth with a wholesale value of up to $3.2 million.
“This is a significant and unbelievable amount of drugs to be shipped at one time and to a destination this far from the border,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert J. Murphy. “It also shows the confidence of the cartel behind this.”
Murphy said the celery was discarded to avoid the risk of contamination.
The DEA connected the source of the meth to the Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels.
The agency alleged these cartels to be the source of “the vast majority” of meth and fentanyl entering the country.
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), fentanyl has become one of the leading causes of death for Americans age 18 to 49.
“The Sinaloa Cartel operated as an affiliation of drug traffickers and money launderers who obtain precursor chemicals—largely from China—for the manufacture of synthetic drugs, manufacture drugs in Mexico, move those drugs into the United States, and collect, launder, and transfer the proceeds of drug trafficking,” the DOJ stated in an April 2023 press release in which it announced charges against the cartel.
The DOJ said the cartel’s drug trafficking operations, which are led by a group called the Chapitos, go back over a decade.
The DOJ accuses the Chapitos of repeatedly and consistently transported lethal amounts of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl.
“The Chapitos allegedly used cargo aircraft, private aircraft, submarines and other submersible and semi-submersible vessels, container ships, supply vessels, go-fast boats, fishing vessels, buses, rail cars, tractor trailers, automobiles, and private and commercial interstate and foreign carriers to transport their drugs and precursor chemicals,” according to the DOJ statement.
To import drugs into the country, the Chapitos utilize stash houses, tunnels, and “a network of couriers,” according to the DOJ.
